The Book of Terrors
by superhackaninja5
Summary: In a typical love story, there would be death and tragedy and hardship, but in the end, everything would turn out fine and there would be a happy ending. This time, there wasn't. But, as a vampire living with the person who he gave up everything to be with, Jeremy's changed. And he wants retribution. RATED M FOR A REASON. AU/AR.
1. Chapter 1

Title:Untitled

Authoress:superhackaninja5

Rating:M

Summary:What if, in order to be with the one you loved, you had to lose everything first?What would you do in order to get revenge on a world that cast you out simply because of your sexuality?Jeremy Gilbert gave up his family, his friends and his life as a human to be with Damon. Now he wants compensation. And he's giving into his vampiric urges in order to get it.

Warnings:blood, gore, smut, slash, lemons, probably rape, lots of graphic death, extreme language, dark themes and mature content.

Note:Yeah, I was bored and hanging out in my room while re-watching s2ep6 of TVD "Plan B" and I got a good idea for a Daremy fic. I haven't really decided what's going to happen or even what it's going to be called yet, but I thought I'd post it to see what people thought. So read and review please. This is also going be a Jeremy-centric fic for the most part, with maybe a chapter or two in Damon or someone else's POV. It's also my first time writing a fic where Damon isn't some sort of higher form of vampire with powers that no one else has so things are definitely going to be different.

* * *

_This is not going to be your typical vampire-human love story where everything resolves itself and everyone gets a relatively happy ending. Though it is a love story, it is not one of the ones where things turn out hunky-dory for the protagonist, overcoming all adversity and living happily ever after._

_I was the human of this story and I lost everything more than once since all of this started. I've had my world ripped apart, had everything and everyone I used to call my family taken away from me, all because I didn't love the person I was supposed to-all because I didn't conform to the expectations everyone had of me at the beginning, which was most likely to meet a nice girl, settle down, have a chandelier and a house full of kids._

_Instead, I fell in love with Damon Salvatore._

_Not only were we both male, but he is a vampire. And, at the time, he was the most selfish, heartless, violent, sarcastic and merciless asshole you would ever meet._

_Yet, somehow he managed to worm his way into my heart. Granted, he's not like that anymore, but that's beside the point _

_At first, I thought what I felt for him was just admiration;because he was the kind of guy that I had always wanted to be. Self-assured, strong, confident, smart and laid back, strutting around like nothing mattered to him. Like he could do anything he wanted and there would be no fallout, no repercussions, nothing that would make him regret his actions.._

_That impression quickly passed, though, when I began to think about him a lot more often than I should have been. I had dreams about him and woke up in the morning with his name on my lips more than once._

_Oddly, though, all that didn't worry me as much as it should have. On the contrary, it actually felt kind of...good. That in and of itself should have warned me that things were about to blow up in my face,_

_I came to him one night, intending on finding out once and for all what I could do about my feelings when he was in love with my sister. Or, at least,when everyone seemed to think he was._

_The first words to come out of his mouth when I showed up at his front door were "What the hell are you doing here?"_

_I should have left the second I detected the open hostility in his normally perfectly composed tone, but my legs had refused to move. So I stayed and replied to his question in as calm a manner as I could muster._

"_I need to talk to you."_

_I had seen the barest flicker of interest in his steel-blue eyes before they had fallen impassive once again. "And why do I need to talk to you?"he'd retorted carelessly, still with his hand on the door, like he'd close the door in a split-second if I didn't give him a good enough reason._

_Again, I knew I should back down, changed my mind and departed before Damon could hurt me. Something kept me from doing so, though and I just couldn't stop the words from coming out of my mouth._

"_I want to ask you something and I'd kind of prefer not to do it out in the open,"I'd told him vaguely, being deliberately ambiguous so he would have to find out what my intentions were._

_He'd given me an impassive once-over at that, appearing torn between hearing me out and sending me away._

"_Why?What could you possibly want to ask me that you wouldn't want anyone else to hear?"he'd quipped smoothly, eyes flashing with an almost suggestive gleam._

"_Are you gonna let me in or not?"I'd sighed with feigned resignation;I knew I'd caught his attention then because he finally stood aside to let me pass._

_Once I got inside his house, he reappeared in front of me, preventing me from going any further than the entranceway._

"_You have five seconds, little Gilbert,"he'd whispered next to my ear, his hand loosely gripping the collar of my shirt. "Ask me whatever it is you want then get out."_

_I had to swallow hard so I wouldn't lose my nerve before throwing caution to the winds and pressing my lips to his, hard._

_I was so sure he'd push me away and be all scandalized and then tell me to get out again, but he defied my expectations and pulled me closer, licking his way into my mouth and turning the kiss bruising._

"_Took you long enough,"he'd laughed huskily against my lips and there was something about the tone of his voice that lead me to believe that maybe it wasn't Elena who he'd been in love with all this time. And it was that impression that prompted me to say the four words that would forever seal my fate._

"_I love you, Damon."_

_That was how all of this began. That same night, Damon told me he loved me, too and we started a whirlwind affair that lasted for several months before anyone found out about it._

_My sister was the first one to catch us and she told her boyfriend, who also happened to be Damon's younger brother. They did everything in their power to convince me that it wasn't real, that Damon didn't truly care about me, that it was all just one of his twisted games. But I wouldn't hear it;eventually, I just stopped talking to them altogether and just started avoiding them._

_Damon became my world;I'd spend whole days at a time with him, kissing him, talking to him about random, innocuous things and revelling in the fact that I finally had someone who wasn't going to be taken away from me the second things got good._

_Little did I know what it would end up costing me to keep that._

_A year after we got together, tragedy struck;my sister, my aunt and both my parents died, murdered by an old enemy of Damon's who was willing to do anything to hurt him. Suddenly, I had no home and no one, except Damon. _

_He and his brother kept me alive;once Stefan finally accepted that I wasn't going to stay away from Damon no matter what he said or did to keep us apart, he helped Damon take care of me-but, barely a week later, we lost him, too._

_Together, Damon and I managed to get rid of the person who was killing everyone close to us, but the damage was done;we both had no one but each other._

_We left Mystic Falls, but I found it impossible to move on. I begged Damon to do something, to make the hurt stop. So he consented to make me like him-to turn me into a vampire._

_It wasn't a simple process:I had to feed on his blood, then die, then feed on a human, but I wanted it so desperately that I didn't care._

_I died in Damon's arms on the night of April 24th, 2012 and rose the next morning, a new creature._

_A vampire._

_I fed before the next day was out;I made the choice to complete the transition and to give eternity with Damon a shot._

_He showed me so much about being a vampire that I never knew before, including all the things his brother had given up when he decided to stop drinking human blood. I lost myself in the throes of the bloodlust and my humanity all but vanished. Except for one thing:my love for Damon would never be extinguished. Instead, it burned all the brighter once I became a vampire. It burns brighter still._

_That brings us to the present.I have only been a vampire for nearly two years, but it already felt like I had been one for and I are still together;we've gone beyond fledgling and creator now;he is my everything-my friend, my lover, my partner and my soul mate. If it wasn't for him, I would have never made it through all the Hell I was forced to endure, high school included._

_But staying with him didn't come without a cost-and it had been one so high that, if I were still able to truly feel, would still haunt me to this day. However, I don't worry about things like that anymore. I choose to live in the moment. And this moment is going to be the moment where everything changes again._

_Now is the time for me to make my mark on this Earth._

_The world will remember the name of Jeremy Gilbert;count on it._

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R&R to let me know what you think. I will greatly appreciate it._  
_


	2. Chapter 2

Title:The Book of Terrors

Authoress:superhackaninja5

Rating:M

Summary:see chapter one

Warnings:see chapter one

Disclaimer:if you don't know the drill by now, then you are stupide. Don't own because if I did, Daremy would be CANON.

Note:yeah I have exams in a week so I should be studying but meh.

* * *

Choked screams punctured the night air, filling his ears as the girl in his arms fought futilely against the iron grip he had on her forearms. Blood ran thickly down her back, exposed by the torn material of her brown turtleneck and contrasting sharply with her ivory skin, like wine spilling across stone.

Jeremy grinned almost savagely-an extremely unbecoming expression on his still youthful face. He pulled back his head, nearly ripping apart the piece of flesh caught between his teeth. His victim looked up at him with wide, fearful eyes.

"P-please,"she whimpered brokenly, tears of pain dripping from her eyes as she clutched at her ravaged neck and she slumped steadily further down the brick wall. "Please stop."

The vampire snickered.

"You know, it would be a lot less painful if you stopped fighting me,"he pointed out in a coldly matter-of-fact tone, bloody upper lip curling in a wicked sneer.

He stepped closer and, in one fell swoop, shoved her back up against the wall and began to tear into her throat again.

Her yell reached an all new pitch as he dug his fangs in harder, seizing her hips and pressing his fingers into her skin until bruises bloomed like roses. Jeremy only laughed, tangling his hand in her thick hair and yanking her head back to give himself better access.

The world spun around him as each of his senses went into overdrive with the reinforcement of fresh blood filling his mouth. It was a heady thing, the combination of the fluid streaming down his throat and the warm body pressing against him.

Eventually, her struggles began to weaken and she surrendered,making Jeremy chuckle cruelly as he continued to drain her. She began to scream for an entirely different reason when his hand reached below her skirt and gave her a tantalizing stroke.

The fleeting pleasure didn't last long, though, because as her life force steadily declined, the vampire stopped trying to make her enjoy it. After all, he did enjoy a good murder as much as the next creature of the night.

Seconds later, when he had sucked her dry, she collapsed to the floor as lifelessly as a rag doll, right next to his previous two victims.

Stepping away from the mangled corpse(s), he deftly wiped his mouth off on the back of his hand as his fangs receded as well as the dark veins surrounding his eyes. Licking the blood off of his fingers, Jeremy caught sight of another human-a male, this time-running past the mouth of the alley he was currently standing in. Before he could tear into that next one, though, a hand shot out and closed around his wrist.

"Shouldn't that be enough for tonight, Jer?"

He turned slowly at the sound of that familiar deep, faintly sarcastic baritone behind him. A smile curved his lips when he realized who it was.

"Damon,"he greeted his lover, pleasantly surprised by the elder vampire's appearance. " Have you been following me?"

Damon didn't release his wrist, but he did loosen his grip slightly. "I don't need to. We've been together long enough for me to recognize your patterns,"he pointed out matter-of-factly. Then he grinned before adding, "And yes, I have been following you."

The younger rolled his eyes at the typically unaffected response. "What? Even after all this time, you still don't trust me?"he chided playfully. He was still unprepared for Damon to blur forward, intentionally invading his personal space until their faces were barely centimetres apart.

"I trust you,"Damon whispered, letting go of his wrist to grip the back of his neck. He pressed their foreheads together. "I was just a little offended you didn't invite me along, that's all. You know how much I love a good hunt."

Jeremy snorted softly, but with amusement glinting in his bronze eyes. "Well, the night's still young. Care to join me?"he replied invitingly, hooking his index finger into one of Damon's belt loops and leaning forward so their chests were touching.

The blacknette brushed a kiss over the corner of his mouth.

"I'd love to,"he accepted lowly, reaching for Jeremy's fingers and squeezing them lightly.

Together, the two of them departed the alley, chasing after the jogger Jeremy had previously sighted. When they caught up to him, two pairs of fangs sank into either side of the man's white neck and he was instantly trapped between two solid, stone-like bodies.

Twin gazes locked from either side of their victim, both nearly black with blood as the pair of vampires fed on the human male, keeping him inert by boxing him in against their chests. Mere seconds later, his skin had turned a sickly grey and was as empty of the crimson fluid as Damon's mouth was drenched in it, so they dropped him onto the ground, carelessly kicking him aside.

"_Now_ it's enough for tonight,"Jeremy declared in an undertone, closing the distance between them and mouthing at Damon's jawline. "Other plans?"

The blacknette's dark eyes flashed slightly beneath his long ebony lashes as they gradually returned to their usual unearthly shade of azure. He grasped the younger's chin and tilted it toward him so their eyes met again.

"Oh, I have a few,"he responded evenly. "And they start with getting out of here and going somewhere a little more...clean." His lover smirked approvingly. "I don't have a problem with that."He entwined their fingers again. "Lead the way, babe."

* * *

_I could still remember the first time I'd ever killed someone. It had been the same day that I'd made the decision to turn;I'd drained my very victim and I'd felt nothing-no guilt, no remorse, not a single thing._

_It had been true, what they said;that vampires didn't have to feel bad about stuff if they didn't want to-that they could shut it off. It was their basic instinct-it made eternity on this Earth a lot easier. I'd made the choice to give into that urge, to not let the weight of my sins cripple me for the foreseeable future. I had turned it all off;all of it-except for one thing._

_I remembered what it felt like, holding that girl in my arms while I steadily sucked the life out of her. The sensation of her warm, viscous blood sliding down my throat while her struggles slowly ebbed was forever burned into my memory. I could still recall every one of her pleas, her screams and even one of her moans once she finally surrendered herself to the knowledge that she was going to die._

_That power I'd felt after killing her, the amazing amount of control and the unexpected emptiness;it had been like a drug. A heady, addictive, intoxicating drug that had given me a high like nothing I'd ever experienced before. _

_All of the pain I'd felt, the misery, the guilt, the loneliness after I'd lost my family-it had all just vanished. I'd been wonderfully, deliciously numb._

_Then I'd laid eyes on Damon-and it had been as if I was seeing him in an entirely different light. Literally._

_Everything that I'd come to love about his appearance had seemed more intense than ever. His hair had appeared darker, his skin whiter and I didn't think I'd ever noticed his eyes being so..._blue.

_In essence, he was...gorgeous._

_When he'd caught me staring, his lips had curved into that familiar rakish smirk of his and he'd winked at me. "See anything you like?"he'd quipped silkily;the suggestive tone of his voice had made me shiver with lust._

_I'd flashed him a smirk of my own, revealing my newly formed and blood-drenched fangs. "Definitely,"I'd responded before pulling him towards me and sealing our mouths together in a hard, passionate kiss._

_Another thing I remembered about that day was how good Damon had tasted as he invaded my mouth and awoke every nerve in my body with his skillful touches. He knew me like the back of his hand;knew exactly which spots to touch to have me begging for more._

_The thing I remembered most prominently, though, was the feeling of bliss I'd gotten while laying on the grass with Damon, both of us naked from the waist up and my creator's arm draped almost lazily over my stomach. It had been the same feeling I'd gotten when I realized that I had the chance to be with him forever. And I'd welcomed it;I was his-completely and utterly._

* * *

They arrived at an unfamiliar marble building fifteen minutes later, the sound of music emanating faintly out of the ornate double-door. A row of three uniformed males stood in front of the entrance, spinning weapons in their gloved hands, causing Jeremy to raise one of his chestnut eyebrows.

"Where are we?"he questioned curiously, forehead creasing slightly. Damon wrapped an arm around his waist and steered him toward the building. "Private party,"he said out of the corner of his pale mouth. "Trust me."

He walked them up to the three ''guards'' and smiled when one of them noticed him. "Mr. Salvatore,"the ''guard'' greeted him formally, scrambling to open the black doors for him. "We've been waiting for you."

"Well, here I am,"Damon replied carelessly as he and Jeremy passed them and crossed the threshold into what was obviously some sort of high-class club. "Friends of yours?"the younger vampire asked in an undertone as he cast a look at his surroundings, scrutinizing the circular room carefully.

His companion smiled. "No, but their boss is,"he answered evasively, releasing Jeremy's waist to grab his hand and lead him to the back of the room. There was a marble staircase there, curving at the top so that Jeremy couldn't see where it ended.

"Come on. We're on a schedule,"Damon prodded, jerking his boyfriend out of his momentary reverie. He ascended the staircase rapidly with Jeremy following close at his heels.

When they reached the top, the former human saw a large silver, and very extravagantly decorated dining hall. And in the center stood a short, light-haired figure, dressed smartly in a crisp, tailored suit.

Jeremy saw the figure's lips twist into a welcoming smile when they entered his line of sight. "Damon,"he called pleasantly, revealing that it was another male. "So glad you could make it."

His voice was cultured and carried the slightest trace of an accent, It was also one that Jeremy could have sworn he recognized.

He didn't realize why until the two of them were face-to-face.

"Elijah,"he stated in surprised tone, giving the shorter brunette a slightly awed once-over. "You were the last person I'd expected to see here."

Elijah chuckled indulgently. "Yes, well, I heard you two had come back on the radar and I wanted to...catch up,"he explained smoothly. He jerked his head in Damon's direction. "Your boyfriend came to me first.".

"What?When?"Jeremy quipped, turning his attention on Damon. "Yesterday,"his lover supplied easily. "Because Elijah here has a rather interesting proposition for us-and I brought you here tonight so you could hear it firsthand."

The brown-haired Original inclined his head to corroborate the blacknette's words. "The others should be arriving momentarily, then we can get down to business,"he said matter-of-factly. "In the meantime, feel free to help yourself to a drink."

"Don't mind if I do,"Damon grabbed a glass and the bottle of Scotch off of the table behind the other and proceeded to pour himself a generous amount of the amber liquid. "Jer?" "No, I'm good,"Jeremy declined, his gaze back on the third member of their party.

Damon shrugged and sat down, slinging one of his long legs over the other and leaning back in his chair, fingers curled around his glass. Jeremy followed suit a second later, sitting next to him just in time for the rest of Elijah's guests to make their appearance.

"Well, well, aren't we a full house tonight,"Elijah's brother, Kol, observed flippantly as he joined them, his other two siblings entering behind him. Elijah smiled slightly. "You all made it. Good."

"So what's this idea that you have that requires all of us to hear it, Elijah?"Klaus questioned, discouraging any further levity. His cerulean eyes bored holes into his brother's copper orbs, searching for the answer. "I was wondering that myself,"Jeremy added pointedly, crossing his arms over his chest.

"All right, then."Elijah cleared his throat perfunctorily. "Niklaus, as you all know, is a hybrid and his werewolf side has been sealed by a very powerful curse. In order to break that curse, he needed a particular sacrifice:the blood of the doppelganger. Unfortunately, the last one died two years ago-but I found another way."

He paused briefly before continuing. "It requires a few things, starting with the death of a rather significant number of humans and ending with a spell from the legendary Book of Terrors."

Silence followed that pronouncement;each of the other vampires's faces had gone slack with a mix of shock and disbelief. Finally, after several moments, Damon decided to break the tension.

"Why involve all of us?Why not just Klaus?"he enquired, brow furrowed in confusion. Jeremy and the other two Original siblings appeared to be wondering the same thing.

"Because there are things in that Book that the rest of you might also be interested in-and because you, Jeremy, you are the only one who can find the Book for us."

Jeremy's twin eyebrows cocked, scepticism etched into every inch of his olive-skinned features. "And what, pray tell, gives you that idea?"

Bronze clashed with copper, unblinking.

Elijah directed a slender finger at his exposed right arm. "Unless I'm mistaken, the map just appeared on your skin."

Jeremy followed Elijah's finger and when he saw what the Original meant, he was rendered utterly speechless. Around his bared flesh was a multitude of swirling black symbols that definitely hadn't been there a moment ago.

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R&R!


	3. Chapter 3

Title:The Book of Terrors

Authoress:superhackaninja5

Rating:M

Summary:see chapter one

Warnings:see chapter one

Disclaimer:You know what it is. I don't own anything. :P

* * *

Hours later, in the small hours of the morning, he was sitting back against the wall in his bedroom with his legs spread out in front of him on the off-white carpet and the sleeve of his blue shirt pushed up past his elbow so he could stare at the multitude of black symbols etched into his exposed forearm.

They were like nothing he had ever seen before;the colour of raven's wings and crawling up his skin like some bizarre, multifaceted vine. He didn't even recognize the symbols;they were as alien to him as if they were written in Cyrillic. Not to mention the fact that they had appeared extremely recently.

As he continued to examine the odd brands embedded in his olive flesh, his preternatural hearing picked up the sound of Damon entering their room-but he didn't, couldn't look away. He felt fingers on the back of his neck before his lover's smooth voice punctured his reverie.

"Have you figured out what they mean yet?"the elder vampire spoke right next to his ear, pressing close so that they were cheek-to-cheek. "Or at least where they came from?"

Jeremy shook his head lightly, finally tearing his gaze away from his bared limb. "Nope, I don't have a clue about either,"he replied flatly, pinching the bridge of his nose and shutting his eyes tightly. "And there's something very wrong about that."

"Hn,"Damon murmured his agreement, absently edging his fingers into Jeremy's thick brown locks so the other began to unconsciously lean back into his touch. "We could always go back to Elijah-he seems to be the one to go to about this Book of Terrors stuff."

"No,"the brunette said thoughtfully. "He may have been the one to tell us about it, but he said so himself:he can't translate these. Neither could any of his siblings and they've all been around for millenia, a lot longer than either of us have." He turned his head to the side, peering at the blacknette through his copper lashes. "Know of anyone else?"

Steel-blue eyes met his chocolate brown ones, emotion flashing briefly across them before they returned to their usual insipid state. "Well,"Damon appeared to be thinking about it, lifting one of Jeremy's hands, turning it palm-up and stroking along the vein in his wrist, "There is one person-but you won't like going back to him."

The sun broke into their open window at that exact moment, glaring hard into Jeremy's face as his forehead wrinkled in a wary frown. "Don't tell me;Alaric?"

Damon shrugged offhandedly.

"I know he doesn't approve of your way of dealing with your family's death, but aside from the Originals, he is the only one who could possibly tell us what these mean,"he justified his suggestion bluntly, tracing one of the symbols with his index finger. He shot Jeremy a look, as if daring him to contradict him. "Unless you have a better solution."

Jeremy gave a resigned sigh, watching Damon continue to caress his arm. "Whatever,"he consented after a moment, tone dull and lifeless. He shifted so his side was pressed against Damon's and leaned his head against the latter's shoulder. "So, plans for my return to Mystic Falls, then."

He made a soft noise at the back of his throat when Damon brought Jeremy's hand to his lips, brushing a kiss over the upturned palm and nipping at his pulse point. "Despite his disapproval, Alaric is still an ally, if not a friend." He dropped Jeremy's arm then, moving his own to coil around his fledgling's waist. "And if anything, we can give that town a much-needed wake-up call while we're there."

Jeremy smirked at those words. "You'd think they would have gotten the picture by now,"he stated disdainfully, rolling his eyes. Damon chuckled lowly. "They believe what they want to:they don't want to believe that there are monsters worse than themselves out there."

"There aren't,"Jeremy mumbled, nuzzling his face into the crook of Damon's neck and smiling when the elder tilted his chin up to give him better access. "Mm,"he scraped his fangs over the blacknette's skin, savouring the taste. "May I?"he whispered.

Damon's response was to tug away the collar of his leather jacket, baring a tantalizing expanse of his ivory skin. "Go for it,"he permitted invitingly, relaxing his dark head against the wall.

The elder vampire's surrender just made it all the more satisfying when he stretched his jaw wide and sank his fangs into his lover's veins. He moaned huskily when that first warm gush of blood pooled inside his mouth-and he let himself get lost in the throes of feeding on Damon's sweet blood.

When the elder''s hand gripped his hair and pulled his head back, he didn't try to resist, locking his now dark eyes with Damon's bright blue ones. Jeremy saw his reflection in those sapphire ice crystals;saw the crimson veins lining his face and russet liquid dripping from his lips.

His breath caught when Damon moved, claiming his blood-drenched mouth in a fierce, messy kiss. It was all tongue and teeth and he couldn't help but let out a second moan when he felt his lower lip being punctured by Damon's fangs.

After a moment, Damon pulled away, tugging lightly at Jeremy's bottom lip as he did so. His tongue flicked out to catch one last drop of blood as it ran down Jeremy's chin.

"Well, that was...unexpected,"he commented, one of the corners of his mouth quirking slightly as he ran his index finger underneath the brunette's chin.

Jeremy chuckled ruefully, getting up off of the floor. "Not really." He stretched his arms over his head, rolling his shoulders to work out the stiffness from sitting in the same position for so long.

He had to smile when he felt a pair of strong arms wrap around him from behind. "I love you,"Damon said softly, lips brushing the curve of his ear as the black-haired vampire molded himself to Jeremy's back. Jeremy clutched Damon's hand on his stomach, leaning into the embrace.

"I love you, too,"he replied in the same tone, feeling Damon kissing the back of his neck at the same moment the words left his mouth. He turned and placed his hands on Damon's shoulder's, touching their foreheads together. "Always."

Damon tightened his arms around Jeremy's waist, bringing the two of them chest-to-chest. "Always,"he repeated firmly, before pulling Jeremy into another kiss, this one slower and gentler than the previous one.

This time when they broke apart, Damon lifted Jeremy up and set him down on top of their bed, brushing a few errant strands of hair off of his forehead. "We'll pay a visit to Alaric later on."

"Okay,"Jeremy agreed grudgingly, sighing. "Can I get some sleep first, then?It's been one hell of a crazy night."

Damon rolled beside him, pulling the younger's back against his chest. "Sleep tight, Jer,"he pressed a kiss to the side of Jeremy's head, interlocking their fingers. Jeremy relaxed into him, squeezing his hand before letting his eyelids fall shut and drifting off.

* * *

_That first night after I had completed the transition, after my first kill, outside and under the stars, Damon had shown me one of the best advantages of being a vampire._

_He kissed my blood-drenched lips, seizing a handful of my dark hair and licking every inch of my mouth with deliberate slowness, making sure I felt every second of it. From that one kiss, every one of my senses instantly went into overdrive._

_His free hand slid underneath the hem of my long-sleeved shirt, tracing the outline of my abdomen and stroking the bare skin there. I backed up into a nearby tree, pulling Damon with me and endeavouring strongly not to break our lips's contact. He followed without hesitation and tightened his grip on my hair, using it to tilt my head back so he could leave fevered kisses along my chin and throat._

_I moaned unrestrainedly, feeling heat blossom everywhere Damon's lips landed and everywhere his hands touched. And when he tugged away the collar of my jacket and began to suck on my collarbone, I came completely undone._

"_Damon,"I whined lowly, the word coming out strangled and hoarse as my heart rate skyrocketed and I started to feel my balance waver. I clutched at his shoulders in an effort to ground myself, my eyes slipping shut without any conscious thought._

_It was like my entire world was spinning on its axis;the lightest touch had me gasping and aching for more. Damon's hands gradually ventured higher, skating over my nipples and hardening them instantly. His tongue dragged wetly up my jawline, stopping at my ear so he could lick the outer shell._

"_Jeremy,"he purred, and his voice was so low, so dark that I almost didn't recognize it. He hummed as he took my earlobe into his mouth, roughly scraping his fangs over it. I arched into him, grinding my hips against his and inhaling sharply at the rush and sensation of his fangs on my over sensitized skin._

_My breath rapidly became more and more ragged as Damon pushed my jacket off of my shoulders and scraped those razor-sharp teeth over the side of my neck this time._

"_Did you know that blood-sharing between vampires is said to be a pleasure second only to sex?"he breathed into my skin;my pulse jumped at the obviously suggestive note in his voice. "Oh?"I replied shakily, trying-and failing epically to make my own voice sound as normal as possible._

_He chuckled huskily at the catch in my tone, inhaling slowly as if he were trying to breathe me in. "Mm,"he hummed again in an affirmative and I shuddered when I felt his tongue tracing the muscle that connected my neck to my shoulder. "Would you be terribly averse to letting me test that theory?"Damon asked silkily._

_I swallowed with anticipation-and I knew Damon could probably feel my pulse throbbing at the suggestion. I was powerless to deny him at that point;and, truth be told, I wanted Damon to bite me, wondering if it would feel just as good-or even better than it had when I had still been human. Surrendering, I turned my head to the side, downright offering Damon my neck._

"_Do it."_

_I barely had time to breathe before Damon sank his fangs into my flesh, breaking the skin over my pulse point and entering my bloodstream._

_Another strangled cry tore itself from the back of my throat;this was...euphoric, indescribable. Pure bliss. The sensation of having the blood siphoned from my body was a hundred times more intense and a hundred times better than it had been when I had still been human._

_Damon's moan reverberated throughout my veins and only served to ramp up my arousal even further. The only thing that could have made it better was when Damon shifted his head and pressed his own neck into my fangs, making me drink his blood as well._

_Well, the originator of Damon's theory was definitely correct;blood-sharing was a pleasure second only to sex. _

_And I was wrong;things got even better when Damon removed his own jacket and shirt before reaching for my belt. He undid it with practised ease and hooked his fingers under the waistband of my jeans, sliding them off my hips so they pooled untidily around my ankles._

_I returned the favour soon after, revealing in the process that Damon happened to not be wearing any underwear._

_The combination of the sweet nectar that was Damon's blood and seeing him utterly naked was too much. I hardened to the point of pain and to tear myself away from Damon's neck._

"_Damon, please,"I whimpered needily, rocking forwards so I could press our erections together._

_Damon finally lifted his head, drops of blood falling from his lips like crimson rain. He gripped my hip with one hand, using the other to rid me first of my t-shirt and then my boxers, leaving us both in the same state of undress._

"_I didn't think it was possible for me to want you more,"he commented in a sensuous tone, tongue running over his lips and gathering t he excess blood so it wouldn't go to waste. He spun me around and molded his body to my back before adding, "But I do."_

_I hissed instinctively when he pressed a finger inside me, but he immediately soothed the burn by kissing behind my ear. "Relax, love,"he crooned reassuringly. "You know it will only get better." "I know,"I agreed, nodding, "Keep going."_

_When he added a second finger, it got much better and I began to push back against the two appendages, crying out when Damon tapped that special place inside me that made me see stars. The third was the tipping point, making me want to take them all even deeper. "Damn it, Day, I need you,"I pleaded impatiently, the friction his fingers were creating making my head spin._

_I felt Damon press a kiss to the back of my neck before consenting, "As you wish." He retracted his fingers. I didn't even have time to miss them before my creator filled me with his thick, hard cock._

_My hands clenched compulsively over Damon's wrists and I rolled my hips backward,eager for him to continue. "Move,"I demanded, voice hoarse with sexual pain._

_He obeyed instantly, thrusting into me harder, rougher and deeper than he ever had before. The grip he had on my hips became like a lifeline as he fucked me into that tree, my mewls and groans mingling with his grunts and hisses._

_In the heat of the moment, I felt him biting into my left shoulder, licking up the trails of blood that leaked out and taking this to a whole new level of ecstasy. I lost myself in the hypnotic rhythm of Damon's thrusts and the practically intoxicating sounds he was uttering against my ear._

_I nearly screamed when one of Damon's hands moved to close around my cock and began to pump, inevitably speeding up my orgasm. I hit my peak when Damon hit that bundle of nerves again and I came, panting his name breathlessly as I spilled all over his fingers._

"_I love you,"he whispered into my ear just before he joined me, groaning out my name as he filled me with his seed._

"_I love you, too,"I responded while he rode out the very last drop of his orgasm, his undulating hips finally stilling behind mine._

_We both sank to the ground as he slid out of me, and he let me use him as a pillow while I caught my breath. "I think eternity with you was the best choice I've ever made,"Damon declared truthfully, absently carding a hand through my hair._

_I smiled at the sincerity in his voice. He was everything to me now-and I had him forever. _

* * *

Alaric had been privy to the darker side of the world for a very long time. Ever since his parapsychologist wife had been killed and turned by a vampire, he had made it his life's mission to eradicate all of the bloodbeasts he came across.

Unfortunately, he happened to be technically related to two of them.

Even so, eh was still surprised to find the aforementioned vampires waiting for him in his loft when he woke up in the morning. Or, to be more specific, standing in the center of his sitting room, both clad almost entirely in black.

"Jeremy, Damon,"Alaric greeted them blearily, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "What are you two doing back in town?"

Damon grinned. "You say that like you don't _want _us back, Ric,"he mock-chided, putting a hand to his chest and faking hurt.

The vampire hunter/history teacher rolled his hazel eyes expressively, stifling a yawn and casting a cursory glance at the clock.

"Six am? Aren't you two usually not in bed until like four hours ago?"he quipped incredulously. "Vampire,"Jeremy pointed out as if that explained everything. Then he switched topics. "As for what we're doing here, there's a little legend that we want some information on, and it just so happens that you're the only one who might know something about it."

"And this mystery legend would be about what?"Alaric said, arching both of his dirty blonde eyebrows. The two vampires shared a brief look before Jeremy replied for both of them, "The Book of Terrors."

Alaric's eyebrows rose until they were practically touching his hairline. "Why are you interested in that?"he queried curiously, folding his arms over his chest. Damon's icy gaze narrowed fractionally.

"That's not really any of your business, now is it?"he shot back evasively, as if daring Alaric to enquire further.

"It is if you want my help,"the historian countered stubbornly, unwilling to drop the matter that easily. He ventured over to his kitchen to make himself some coffee while he waited patiently for his answer.

Finally, after nearly a full minute's silence, Damon made a decision. "The Originals want Klaus to break the hybrid curse;since the doppelganger is dead, he needs an alternative to the sacrifice-and apparently, there is one in this Book,"the blue-eyed vampire explained in a flat, monotonous tone, sitting down on the armrest of the leather loveseat behind him and resting an elbow on his upraised knee.

The human froze in the middle of pouring himself a cup of the caffeinated liquid, evidently stunned by that proclamation. "Why would _you_ want him to do that?"Alaric wondered in disbelief.

"He's a friend,"Jeremy input without hesitation, "And you know we have no great love of humans. Whatever this costs them will be no skin off of our backs." "I don't know if this has occurred to you, Jeremy, but _I_ happen to be human,"his former teacher interjected coolly, leaning his hip against the kitchen counter.

Appearing to lose patience, the black-haired vampire used his vampire speed to launch himself out of his sitting position, nearly bending Alaric backward as he seized him by his throat.

"There was a reason that Sage left you alive;she didn't think you and I were close enough for you to matter,"Damon hissed in a tone of nearly glacial calm. "If you don't give us what we want, I'll prove her right by ending your life myself."

Alaric stilled at the utter lack of emotion in the vampire's voice. He wasn't joking around, the human realized with legitimate fear. "Fine,"he surrendered after a moment's pause.

He waited until Damon had let him go before adopting a deceptively casual manner so the two creatures wouldn't hear his racing heart.

"Do you have anything more substantial for me to go on than just Elijah's tales?"he examined, taking on a decidedly business-like tone. Damon stepped away from him deliberately, "Show him your arm, Jer,"

The fledgling exhaled heavily then rolled his right sleeve up past his elbow so he could show Alaric the symbols engraved in his tawny skin. "Can you tell us what these mean?"he demanded bluntly without preamble.

His former history teacher set down his coffee cup and walked toward him, tentatively closing a hand around the outstretched limb when the distance between them had dissipated. He turned Jeremy's arm over slowly, eyes scrutinizing each and every stroke of ink individually and committing the symbols to memory.

A frown gradually began to crease his lined forehead. "These do look somewhat familiar..."Alaric started vaguely, tracing one of the etchings with his thumb. "But I can't quite remember where I've seen them before."

He released Jeremy's arm and turned on his heel, disappearing into his study. He came back a few minutes later, hefting a sizable stack of books in his two hands.

Setting the pile of thick bound volumes down on his coffee table, the historian picked up the top book and quickly opened it to a page marked by several yellow sticky notes. "Here,"He turned the book around and tapped the left page with his index finger so the vampire duo would get the picture. "I knew I recognized those symbols. They were created by the Shiraq, an ancient race that existed long before vampires and werewolves."

"Which means?"Damon prompted insistently, tapping his boot on the hardwood floor impatiently. Alaric sighed before elaborating. "Their leader invented the Book. Those symbols on your arm are meant to be a map. But here's the thing:the map can only appear on the flesh of one of their own."

Jeremy was stunned. He looked over at Damon and found an impassive expression on his lover's face. "So I...am one of these Shiraq,"he stated hesitantly, testing the word out on his tongue. His brow furrowed. "I did not see that coming,"the younger vampire admitted truthfully.

"Right, well,"Damon cut in smoothly, his ivory face unreadable under the dim light. "What do they _say?_" The human shrugged. "From what I can tell, it's a riddle," He cleared his throat warily before reading it;

"_Where the mountains and rivers cross,_

_Where the ice turns to ash_

_You will find the throne of Fallen Glaciers_

_Underneath lies the final terror_

_In the tomb_

_Our final resting place for fear._"

Silence fell once he had finished, all three of them mulling over the meaning of the words that had just been spoken. Jeremy was the first to broach his thoughts. "There's a lot of mentions of ice,"he pointed out, "Could that mean Iceland?Or possibly somewhere else where it's always snowing?"

"I'm no great shakes at solving riddles,"Damon confessed dully, "Ric?" "Iceland seems probable. Or Russia, or possibly somewhere in Canada,"Alaric mused, thinking out loud. The black-haired vampire shrugged for a second time. "Looks like we might need to have a talk with the others,"he suggested to Jeremy, who nodded his agreement. "Thanks for the help, brother."He said farewell to Alaric.

Jeremy inclined his head. "Thanks, Alaric,"he repeated gratefully as he and Damon made for the door.

"Next time call before just showing up,"the human called after them as they departed, All he got by way of a response was Damon's acerbic laughter echoing down the hallway before both he and Jeremy vanished as if they had never been there at all.

* * *

In the middle of Damon and Jeremy's sitting room, there were the six vampires, almost all clad in muted colours to blend in with the backdrop. The lights were off, but, being vampires, they were unnecessary.

Jeremy was the first to break the silence, calling everyone's attention to him as he cleared his throat.

"I found out what these mean,"he announced matter-of-factly, rolling up his right sleeve so his companion could see the dilapidated ink-black symbols etched into his skin. "They contain a riddle that is meant to lead us to the Book of Terrors. Moreover, they are in a language created by the same race that wrote the Book,"

"So what's the riddle, then?"Kol queried curiously, crossing his arms over his chest and tapping his foot expectantly.

Jeremy's almond eyes narrowed slightly. "Well, before I tell any of you anything, you better damn well convince me that you can be trusted,"the former human stated coolly.

A frown furrowed the copper-haired Original's brow. "Come on, Jeremy, we're mates,"he mock chided, "What makes you think we aren't trustworthy?" "Well, for one thing,the other night, Elijah there neglected to mention that inside the Book, there are several spells that would be useful to us, not you."

"Like what, for instance?"Klaus asked suspiciously, an unreadable expression on his alabaster face. Damon's gaze remained focused on Elijah while he answered. "One to raise the dead-and even one to make a regular vampire stronger than you and all of your siblings?"

The hybrid's head swivelled around to glare down at his younger brother almost disapprovingly. "Oh _ really_?"

Elijah didn't appear fazed by his brother's reproach. "Can you blame me for keeping quiet about that one?"the shorter Original retorted in that infuriatingly calm tone of his without looking at Klaus; "I mean, I am an Original, so why would I want to advertise a spell that could make someone stronger than I?"

"I'll grant you that,"Damon conceded, "But what about the rest? I thought we were supposed to be friends. What else are you keeping from us, Elijah_?_"Jeremy pushed his sleeve back down, folding his arms over his chest, refusing to tell the elder vampire anything until he fessed up.

"A lie of omission is still a lie-and friends don't lie to each other,"the Gilbert pointed out. "I'd also like to know what is in this ''Book'', brother,"Rebekah put in.

With everyone's eyes on him, Elijah really had no other choice but to answer. He exhaled slowly before speaking. "Very well,"he surrendered grudgingly, "You want the full story? Here it is;there is also a spell to raise the dead and most of all, a spell to the existence of all vampires, including Originals. That spell is the reason why, after we break Niklaus's curse, I intend to destroy the Book of Terrors."

"But that's not your choice to make,"Damon interrupted pointedly. "The Book of Terrors doesn't belong exclusively to you. And, unless I'm mistaken, the only way you're getting it at all is if Jeremy tells you what those symbols on his arm mean."

"What about a spell to teach the humans a thing or two?"Jeremy asked suddenly, drawing the others' attention onto him.

Elijah's gaze snapped abruptly from Damon onto Jeremy at that, his jaw working furiously like he was considering how much to say. After a minute or two, he responded carefully, "No, but I think you're than capable of that without one." "Don't distract me with flattery,"the youngest vampire shot at him disdainfully. "Back to my original question, can you be trusted?"

His ''friend'' paused, weighing his words. Finally, he nodded. "What if I make you a deal?"Jeremy looked over at Damon for his thoughts;the blacknette gave a noncommittal jerk of his head. "We're listening,"the fledgling prompted, posture rigid.

"What if we find the Book, use it to break the curse and then discuss what to do with it, all of us? No final decisions until everyone agrees,"the brown-haired Original suggested in a placating tone. Damon tilted his chin in his boyfriend's direction. "What do you think, Jer?" "Sounds good to me,"the fledgling consented dully.

"That's settled, then,"Elijah concluded, switching tacks. "So what is this riddle?"

Jeremy cast him a dark glance before reciting the riddle inscribed on his arm without emotion;

"_Where the mountains and rivers cross,_

_Where the ice turns to ash_

_You will find the throne of Fallen Glaciers._

_Underneath lies the final terror_

_In the tomb;_

_Our final resting place for fear."_

When Jeremy finished, he leaned back against the wall, allowing Damon's arm to slide around his hips. "Well, I think we can say it's in a tomb, that much is for sure,"Kol deduced frankly, "But it doesn't tell us much by way of what city, or even what country. For all we know, it could be hidden with some lost civilization."

"That's not too far from the truth, actually,"Elijah commented. He took a deep breath before announcing in a flat voice, "The tomb of the Shiraq is in Norilsk, Russia. It's also home ti Mount Leruska, named for the river that used to be there."

Everyone was silent after that pronouncement, while they all digested Elijah's words. "So we're off to Russia, then,"Damon surmised musingly. He grinned mischievously, "I've never been, so this should be fun."

* * *

I think the ending was a little flat, but eh.


	4. Chapter 4

Title:The Book of Terrors

Authoress:superhackaninja5

Rating:M

Summary:see chapter one

Warnings:see chapter one

Disclaimer:You know what it is. I don't own anything. :P

* * *

_He was in a pit of damp, haunting marshes, and the sky above was alive with roiling thunder and hail. Black rain poured from the heavens in heavy streams, like dark waterfalls. He'd never been here before, but somehow, this place seemed inescapably familiar._

_Thick, solid fog swirled around the barren wasteland, blurring the landscape and clouding the grass and dark sky almost entirely from fog was as thick as smoke;deep grey smoke that permeated the air completely and utterly. There didn't appear to be anyone there-but then again, appearances could be deceiving._

_A tall figure, cloaked in black, suddenly materialized in the center of the lightless marsh, silent and swift as a shadow;its face was completely hidden from view by the cloak's opaque cowl and hood._

Jeremy tossed and turned, attempting to shake these disturbing images from his mind. He didn't usually dream with this much clarity, this much anticlimax;but then, this series of pictures and sounds didn't really seem like a dream.

No, it seemed more like...a vision, actually.

_There was almost no light, yet, the figure was as visible as if it were wearing a neon sign. The figure was unfamiliar;the voice that issued out from underneath its hood, however, wasn't._

"_Many have been felled by the hunt for the Book of Terrors, both vampire and human alike. The Book was created as a test to see if anyone would be able to resist the lure of its powers. Heed my words, Jeremy Gilbert:do not undertake this quest. It will be the end of not only you, but of your creator as well. Are you prepared to make that sacrifice?"_

The fledgling jolted awake at that, shooting up as if he had been electric-shocked and panting as if he had just run a marathon. He pressed the heel of his palm to his forehead, trying to rid himself of the memory of what his mind had just shown him, but no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't.

That hadn't been any ordinary dream;that had been some sort of message. From who, he didn't have a clue.

He didn't think it was a coincidence, though;him receiving that message when they were about to set out to hunt for the Book the very next day. Could that have been a warning? Or just some odd delusion of his, produced by a hidden anxiety?

Jeremy inhaled deeply, opening his eyes and curling his hand into a fist that he pressed against his chest. He looked over at the elder vampire sleeping beside him with the navy sheet pushed down to his hips and exposing his toned, white chest; he wondered if he should wake Damon and tell him about the vision.

As if tuning into his thoughts, Damon stirred, eyelids sliding open and peering blearily up at him. "Hey, why are you awake?"he asked softly, putting a hand on the small of Jeremy's back and turning onto his side.

Jeremy leaned back against the headboard, running a hand absently through his brown locks as he considered exactly how much he wanted to tell the other. Finally, he spoke. "I had a strange dream-only, it wasn't a dream, exactly,"he started tensely, folding his hands in his lap. "It seemed like more of a message. And it was warning me not to hunt for the Book-it said in doing so, I was risking losing you."

His boyfriend's brow furrowed at his explanation, as he slowly rose into a sitting position next to Jeremy. "Really,"he said, drawing the word out into two syllables.

Seeing the dark look on Jeremy's olive-skinned face, Damon sobered. ``Do you think it was legit?"he questioned seriously, rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand.

Jeremy shrugged offhandedly. "I have no idea. It didn't _seem_ fake, though-it seemed like someone was truly trying to warn me not to go look for this thing,"he stated truthfully, bottom lip catching in between his teeth.

"If it was real, I don't think we should do it."

A faint, slightly exasperated sigh escaped the elder vampire's pale lips. "It's a dangerous game the Originals are playing here,"he commented lowly, leaning back against the headboard and curling his fingers in the material of Jeremy's shirt. "There's more to this than just breaking Klaus's hybrid curse. And they're willing to make us the sacrifice for it all."

Jeremy pinched the bridge of his nose;he didn't think vampires could get migraines, but his head was pounding. He closed his eyes, feeling Damon's fingers digging into his back and taking comfort from the contact.

"We're not doing this anymore-_I'm_ not doing this, not if it means dancing to their tune and definitely not if it means losing you,"he stated in a rigid tone, clenching his hand into a fist at his side. "The Book doesn't mean that much to me."

He distinctly heard Damon let out a soft chuckle.

"I'm flattered to know I'm so important to you, Jer,"he said next to his ear, kissing Jeremy's temple and smiling slightly. "But there was a reason why I agreed to help Elijah find the Book when he first told me about it and I still intend to go through with it, even if it's at the risk of losing my life." "And what is this iron-clad reason that you still won't back down from?"the fledgling questioned, raising an eyebrow.

Damon ran a tense hand through his short black hair, debating about whether or not he should tell Jeremy the real reason he wanted the Book of Terrors.

"I want to put that spell into practice;the one that could make me a more powerful vampire than even an Original,"he finally stated in a blunt tone, turning his light blue eyes onto Jeremy's guileless brown ones. The younger vampire blinked;whatever he had been expecting to hear, it hadn't been that.

He opened up his mouth to speak, but his boyfriend held up a slender hand to forestall him. "Before you say anything, listen to me. Are you listening?"he waited until Jeremy closed his mouth and nodded before continuing, "If I had said no to Elijah and his siblings, no matter how many times they say that we're friends, they would kill me without batting an eyelid. They're vampires, just like us;we don't do real friendships."

"You're real friends with Alaric and have been for over a year,"Jeremy pointed out before he could stop himself, crossing his arms over his broad chest. When Damon shot him a look, he clammed up. "Not really;he doesn't matter to me. Why do you think he wasn't one of Sage's targets?Even your aunt made the list before he did,"Damon disagreed frankly. "And anyways, that's beside the point. The Originals aren't me._We_ aren't real friends. Backing out of the hunt for the Book wouldn't have been a smart choice, and I wanted to avoid the choice altogether. _That_ is why I want to change. So that we'll never be in this sort of situation again;so we won't be beholden to these goddamn Originals anymore and fuck the consequences."

He didn't pull away when Jeremy placed both of his hands on either side of his head. "If that's what you want, then, I won't be trying to talk you out of it. I'm your mate, after all, not your mother. Or Stefan,"the brunette said with a careless shrug.

A faint smile crossed over the black-hair's pale lips as he leaned forward so that he and Jeremy were cheek-to-cheek and pressed another kiss to the space just below the younger's ear.

"So I figure if we don't give this a shot, I'll end up dead, anyways. At least, if we continue on, I'll have a chance at getting what I want and at staying alive,"the elder finished swiftly, squeezing Jeremy's wrist, making the other smile, too. "Are those two different things?"Jeremy joked lightly, cocking a dark brown eyebrow.

Damon chuckled against his neck, nuzzling it affectionately. "Actually, now that you mention it, they are,"he said with mock thoughtfulness, laughing when Jeremy nudged him with his shoulder. "Shut up,"his boyfriend retorted, rolling his eyes.

The younger leaned his head against Damon's. "So you're really not worried, then?"he questioned seriously, carding his fingers through the blacknette's silky locks. "At all?" Damon shook his head.

"You know me, Jer:I love coming up with stupid-ass plans and rushing into them headfirst without a second thought,"he replied offhandedly, pulling Jeremy down on top of him as he fell back against their pillows. "And I intend to see this through to the end, whether it costs me my life or not."

"And I'll be right there with you, babe,"Jeremy added firmly, resting his chin on the other's chest. "I wouldn't have it any other way,"Damon grinned, rubbing the back of his neck.

They kissed again briefly before Jeremy closed his eyes and let himself drift off again. He didn't know why he was so worried;Damon would never be felled by something as stupid as some weird vision. He wasn't some broody, weak-minded vampire like most of the others Jeremy had met over the years. He was strong and invincible. And Jeremy would always have him.

With that comforting thought lingering in his head, he slowly relaxed, listening to Damon's heartbeat and letting it lull him back into slumber.

_I love you, Damon Salvatore. And I won't ever let anyone, or anything touch you ._He made a promise to both himself and Damon just before falling asleep. Damon was his lover, his soul mate and the only one he had left in the world. He was the only one left that Jeremy cared about, and the fledgling would do anything to keep it that way.

* * *

Their exhibition started early the next day, before the sun had barely even come up yet. The Originals clearly didn't sleep;when they came to Damon and Jeremy's door, they were all just as impeccable as ever.

"Come on in,"Damon said sarcastically when Klaus brushed past him after he'd opened the door and the Hybrid walked in without a word.

He closed the door behind the blonde Original and his siblings once they were all inside and turned around to face them coolly. "So I'm assuming you're all packed and set to go, then."

Elijah looked back at him dully, both of his hands deep in the pockets of his neatly pressed dinner jacket. "We're on a tight schedule here. The full moon is in less than a week, which is exactly how much time we have to find the Book and bring it back here to break Niklaus's curse,"he stated with his characteristic lack of emotion, bronze eyes dull and expressionless. "Therefore, the time for pleasantries is long gone." "Apparently, so is the time for common courtesy,"the younger vampire commented caustically, rolling his light blue eyes at Jeremy, whose lips flickered in the briefest trace of a smile.

"Come on, chop chop, Salvatore. We don't have all day,"Klaus interjected pointedly, "The clock for my impending transition is ticking away as we speak."

Damon rolled his eyes a second time, then beckoned Jeremy over to his side. "Fine, just give us a minute, will you?"He didn't wait for any of them to answer before curling his hand over the back of his fledgling's neck, steering him out of the living room and back into their bedroom.

"So are we really doing this?"Jeremy asked the elder once they were out of sight and Damon had moved away from him to gather their things. Damon responded tersely, not looking up from the action of shoving things into one of Jeremy's black duffel bags, "Yeah, Jer, we are. At this point, we don't have a choice. But,"he paused momentarily to straighten up and press a kiss to his boyfriend's cheek, speaking into the soft, olive-coloured skin, "Once we get that Book, we can use that spell and then we can do whatever we want and those Originals won't be able to do shit about it."

Jeremy chuckled softly as Damon moved away again and picked up the bag from the floor. "Okay, let's go. Don't want to keep those assholes waiting any longer than we have to,"the blacknette said in a normal tone, taking Jeremy's hand and pulling him out of their room again.

"Ready, are we?"Klaus snarked when they came back into the sitting room, crossing his arms over his chest impatiently. "Like it matters whether we are or not?"Damon shot back dully, walking out their door without even a backward glance, making Jeremy laugh again.

"Well, come on, then,"he called back over his shoulder when he saw the Originals weren't following, "I thought we were on a tight schedule." Jeremy stared, unblinking, at the four Originals with his arms folded, as if daring any of them to make a remark.

Surprisingly, none of them bothered, not even Kol or Klaus. They just followed suit, shutting Damon and Jeremy's front door behind them and taking the lead down the street to where they had a car waiting.

Damon shook his head, looking over at Jeremy, who rolled his eyes in understanding of the aggravation in his lover's expression.

"Let's just go. The sooner we find this Book, the sooner we can get rid of them,"Jeremy said to him in an undertone, squeezing his boyfriend's hand briefly before trailing after their self-important, so-called ''friends'' without any further preamble.

After glancing at his lover's rapidly departing back, Damon let out a quiet sigh under his breath, pinching the bridge of his nose and closing his eyes for a split second. He was pretty damn sure that, as a vampire, he couldn't receive premonitions, but there was something at the back of his mind telling him that this little trip of theirs was going to be about a whole lot more than just some book-and that if they found it, it was going to mean a whole lot more than just breaking the fabled Hybrid curse and setting free Klaus's dormant werewolf side.

He'd been getting this alien feeling-a feeling he'd never truly experienced before- ever since Jeremy had told him about his ominous dream/vision the previous night, about being told that he was going to end up dead if they continued helping the older vampires with their search for the Book of Terrors.

That wasn't what this feeling was, though;no, this was something else entirely-an almost forewarning that his fate if they kept going in this direction was going to be something much, much more complicated and more dastardly than an impending death. It wasn't fear;he was a vampire, he didn't get scared-but it was close.

It was anxiety.

He would never admit it aloud to anyone, especially not the Originals, but something told him, just like it had told Jeremy, that this little quest was going to end in nothing short of disaster;he was sure of it.

* * *

"_We will build a web of lies so dense that no one can untangle it. The Book of Terrors will remain forever in our possession;no one shall ever lay eyes upon it, save for its creators."_

_The dark-haired male turned away from the rain-streaked glass to stare at his companion with eyes so cold that they appeared to be made of pure ice._

"_And what of my heir?"he asked quietly, keeping his voice low so none of the palace's human inhabitants would hear him. Taking a long drought from the glass of amber liquid clutched in his gloved right hand, he swallowed and glared. "Eventually, he will discover his true heritage. And when he does, the entire world will be turned upside down. The old ways will return and everything will be thrown into chaos. I know;I have servants with the ability to see the future and each and every one of them has told me the same."_

"_Then you must do all that you can to prevent that,"the woman at his side advised bluntly, not bothering to sugarcoat it. She stepped forward and looked into the vampire's pupilless eyes without blinking. "The world won't survive another outbreak of the purebloods. They will tear us all apart, without remorse."_

"_And you expect me to stop them, knowing full well what I am and what I've already sacrificed to get you this far?"the vampire retorted in a withering tone, curling his fingers tight around the crystal glass, so tight that his knuckles turned white. He shook his head with an icy, rueful laugh. "You expect too much, you take too much for granted. I do not protect the humans, I merely keep their slaughter to a minimum so that we may continue to live unbothered. Ask me to do more and I might kill you all myself simply on principle." "That would be foolish, my Lord,"the woman whispered, all but spitting out his title, grimacing as if it left a bitter taste in her mouth._

_One of the immortal's immaculate charcoal brows rose queryingly, lips curving in what was obviously amusement._

"_Oh?And why is that?"_

_The woman took another step forward so the two supernatural creatures were face-to-face and he could fully look into her hard brown eyes. _

"_Things have changed since we were in your servitude, Vampyrri,"she all but growled, doing her best to keep her temper in check. "The Shiraq have grown in the last hundred years. If you test us, if you continue to push us and renege on your promise, we _will_ fight back. And, mark my words, it will not be a battle that is easily wo-"_

_Her words were cut off by a cry of distress as the vampire seized a handful of her brown hair and yanked her head back forcefully. "Do not threaten me, witch,"he hissed into her ear, and there was more danger in the silkiness of his tone than in the most deadly of curses. "I have been on this Earth much longer than you. There is little that I have not seen or done or faced and if _you_ are foolish enough to challenge me, I will not only destroy you, but your precious Book as well."_

_He released her with a soft snarl, retracting his fangs with difficulty and turning back to face the window._

"_It's been a long time since you lost your temper like that,"the Shiraq leader commented darkly, rubbing the back of her neck, still feeling the phantom pain of his hand in her hair. "It would be wise for you not to cause me to do so again,"the immortal retorted flatly, not turning around this time, picking up his glass again and pouring himself more of the Scotch that rested on the table next to him._

_Taking another long drink, he waited a moment before speaking again._

"_I won't defend the humans from the fallout if my heir regains his memories, whether it be in a few days, or in a few thousand years,"he stated simply and without remorse. "It is his destiny to become the next king of the pureblood race and I will not stop that. He is my son;he deserves his place above all the other bloodsuckers who have demeaned themselves into aching for lost humanity." "And if your son ends up being the one to destroy all we have worked for?"the Shiraq leader quipped sternly, pulling her long cloak back over her shoulders._

"_Then so be it,"the black-haired immortal declared with a characteristic lack of feeling. "I will not sacrifice the last member of my family for you. The Shiraq don't mean that much to me, and they certainly don't mean more to me than my race."_

_The woman merely gave him a humourless chuckle._

"_Then would you like me to tell you what your prophets have neglected to mention on this matter? Would you like to know what will truly happen if the prince's true self awakens in the future-and if his predestined mate should find the Book of Terrors?"the brown-haired Shiraq questioned smoothly, knowing full well what the immortal's answer would be. "Pray tell,"the vampire prompted in a decidedly bored tone that belied the freezing glow reflected from his eyes in the window._

_His old enemy's lips curled in a faint smile. "Everything will fall to darkness and destruction. The rules will change and the shadows will rise from their prison once again,"she announced darkly and without even a fascimile of pretense._

_There was silence for a few moments except for the sound of the rain beating against the windows and roof overhead. A crash of thunder shook the palace, sounding much louder due to the pair's preternatural hearing._

_Finally, the vampire lord voiced his thoughts on that dire prophecy._

"_There will come a time when the humans will need an awakening from the reasonably peaceful existence we have allowed them to live for so long. My son will be the one to bring back our reign and usher in the new Dark Age. That is the only reason you were allowed to create that Book of yours;it will be the catalyst for his return and for his ascension of the throne."_

_The laugh that the female Shiraq let out this time was a scornful one, clearly dismissing his declaration as simple nonsense._

"_You've finally done it_, my Lord,"_she quipped with a disdainful sneer, throwing up the black hood of her voluminous cloak. "You've finally become the callous and soulless monster I always thought you to be." She turned to leave, but couldn't resist getting in one final sentiment._

"_If you refuse to prevent your son from fulfilling his bloody calling, I will be forced to have him and his mate killed-and you won't be around to stop me. Let's see him usher in this new Dark Age of yours then."_

_With that threat delivered, the witch vanished in a swirl of crimson smoke._

* * *

"**Terror. It seems like such a simple, innocuous word, doesn't it?And yet, it instills the greatest form of fear known to man. Not only that, but it has the power to destroy.._everything_."**

* * *

These last two years with Damon, I saw more of the world than I had ever seen in all of my 17 years as a human. We never got around to Russia, though, so this was going to be an interesting experience for me.

More than that, though, I was looking forward to this trip because I wanted to see what, if it came down to it, the Originals would do if Damon managed to use the spell that would turn him into a vampire even more powerful than they were.

Sitting in the backseat of the car that one of the four Originals, I didn't know which, had compelled for us with Damon next to me, I wondered if he knew what I was thinking. I was silent and unmoving because I didn't want any of the Originals getting into my head, so I was unable to voice these thoughts aloud-but my boyfriend has always had this odd little way of reading me.

He was watching me at the moment;I could feel it. I had my eyes closed, and was blocking out everything around me. I was lost inside my head, and for once, it wasn't completely empty.

It's a funny thing;as a vampire, I had turned my emotions off. I didn't feel for the pathetic humans of the world, I didn't feel remorse when I killed them or when I tore them to pieces while I fed. I didn't care that if Klaus managed to break his curse that a lot of them would inevitably die or that others would, too. But right then, there were a thousand thoughts running through my head;a thousand scenarios that I was considering as possibilities of how this would play out.

The summary of what I was thinking? I wanted to get this trip over with. I wanted Damon to have what he wanted. And most of all, I wanted our so-called ''friends'', the Originals, out of our lives.

"Jer?"Damon's voice broke into my thoughts, his hand falling onto my knee, one of his dark eyebrows raised in a silent question. I looked into his icy blue eyes and saw a flicker of what looked oddly like concern. "I'm fine,"I assured him in an undertone, shooting him a brief sideways glance to meet his gaze.

When he looked sceptical, I reached for him and squeezed his hand. "Not here,"I said out of the corner of my mouth, tossing a pointed look at our companions in the car. Apparently understanding my meaning, he nodded and released my hand, leaning his head back and closing his eyes.

Apparently oblivious to our exchange, Elijah's archaic accent punctuated the heavy silence that had permeated the air since our departure from Damon and I's house.

"We're here,"he declared apathetically, jolting me out of my reverie. Damon didn't even react, other than to open his eyes and swivel his head around to gaze out the window. "Airport looks pretty empty,"he observed without emotion, casting a swift, searching glance over the the tall white building outside with an arched eyebrow and his arms folded across his chest.

"Private plane,"the brunette Original supplied curtly, "I rented the entire place out." "Now no more quibbling,"Klaus interrupted from the front seat, kicking his door open and coming to speak into Damon's window. "Let's go. The Book awaits."

I shrugged and followed him, Kol and the other two out of the car. "Damon,"I propmted, looking over my shoulder at my boyfriend. He rolled his eyes and did the same, getting to his feet and slamming the door shut after he exited the vehicle. "Let's do this,"he said flatly, brushing past us all and heading straight for the airport.


	5. Chapter 5

Title:The Book of Terrors

Authoress:superhackaninja5

Rating:M

Summary:see chapter one

Warnings:see chapter one

Disclaimer:You know what it is. I don't own anything. :P

* * *

In the shadows cast by the buildings surrounding the Red Square, he stood alone, clearly waiting for something. As soon as the grand clock in the center struck midnight, it became clear what-or rather, who.

Five cloaked figures, two of them female and the others male, materialized out of the darkness, standing before him with their heads bowed in deference. Upon their arrival, he stepped out into the faint light cast by the moon, pushing back his brown leather hood to address them.

"Have you located the Book of Terrors?"he asked his companions, his voice high and as cold as ice. The man in the pale blue cloak nodded an affirmative. "It's here in Russia,"he informed their leader truthfully, "They're close to finding it-_very_ close."

The elder inclined his head with satisfaction at that news. "Very good. And do they suspect any ulterior motives yet?" "No,"one of the females piped up, "They still believe we only want it in order to break the Hybrid curse. But I believe the heir will do what he needs to de because he cen't resist the lure of becoming even more powerful than an Original,"

"His father was the same way,"their leader commented, more to himself than to the others. Shaking his head, he switched topics. "Don't let on, whatever you do. This has to be his choice;the Book will awaken his true nature and then the new Dark Age can begin."

"And what of the man meant to be his consort?"the grey-cloaked male queried curiously. "He is one of the Shiraq, our sworn enemy and the protectors of the Book, father."

The elder waved a hand dismissively at his concern "He won't be a threat,"he stated confidently. "Quite the contrary, actually;he is going to be our biggest asset-because he and the king are lovers. He may be one of the Shiraq, but he is also a vampire and the heir is his sire. That is a two-fold connection right there, and with that connection comes enough power to defend against even the most deadly threat,"

There was a brief silence while that revelation was digested by the group of vampires. Then the male in the blue cloak spoke up again. "And what of the curse? Will we get the chance to break it?"he quipped in his heavily accented tone.

The brown-cloaked vampire wasn't immediately forthcoming with a response, taking a moment to weigh his words carefully before speaking. "Why do you want it broken so badly?"he retorted coolly, "When the heir takes his place on the vampire throne, the Hybrid lineage will be superfluous. You won't have even a fraction of the power he has-and making more would benefit no one,"

"So why place the curse on me in the first place?"the Hybrid shot back fiercely, "Why, if I'm so _superfluous_, would you bother taking away my werewolf side at all?"

Mikael simply stared back at him, his expression inscrutable. Then he spoke.

"You have a job to do,"he said abruptly, deliberately ignoring his subordinate's question, "Get it done before the Shiraq figure out what we're up to-or else, the end of the world will be coming a lot sooner than later,"

Klaus shot him a scathing look before disappearing along with his half-siblings, leaving the Square vacant as before. Before following suit, the eldest Original crossed to the center of the flat ground and, clutching the medallion he wore around his neck tightly in his fist, whispered under his breath, "The end of the world as we know it begins today."

Then he, too, vanished into the night.

* * *

Everything I'd ever seen and heard of Russia didn't even begin to do it justice. For one thing, it wasn't snowing;for another, it looked oddly deserted-although that might have been because it was the middle of the night. Clouds obscured the majority of the sky and gave it a smoky, stormy appearance, making it near impossible to see the moon or the stars.

We were once again in the backseat of a car, only this time with a compelled driver and the Originals in another car trailing after us. Not ideal for them, maybe, but far more convenient for me.

"So this is Norilsk,"Damon commented next to me, his steel-blue eyes focused on the tinted glass window, which bathed everything outside a grainy shade of sepia so it all appeared vaguely brown-ish.

I glanced over at him briefly,, noticing the familiar calculating look in his crystal blue eyes. He was thinking about something, presumably formulating a plan of how we could use the Book of Terrors for our ends underneath the Originals' noses. "You've really never been here before?"I quipped curiously, giving him time to ponder whatever it was he needed to.

The elder vampire shook his dark head honestly. "I never got the chance;chasing my little brother took me through most of the United States, but never this far north,"he responded with a shrug before switching topics, "Anyways, that's beside the point. I think I have a solution to our ''Terror'' problem," "Oh?And what might that be?"I asked, arching an eyebrow pointedly.

He was silent for a minute, a slight crease appearing on his pale forehead before he explained, "You're our only map to the Book, Jeremy. They won't touch you until we get it. Chances are, though, it's written in the same language as those symbols on your arm;therefore, I'm the only one who can convince Alaric to help us translate them. Ergo, Klaus and his posse are going to have to do this our way-otherwise, they're not getting dick,"

I felt the corners of my mouth twitch, concealing an amused smile at Damon's choice of words. He was such an _elegant _speaker when he got worked up over something. "And if the Book isn't in the Shiraq's language?"I couldn't help but question, crossing my arms over my chest expectantly.

Damon lifted a leather-clad shoulder carelessly. "Well, I guess we'll just have to cross that bridge when we come to it,"he answered in an offhand tone as if he didn't really care one way or the other. Actually, knowing him, he probably didn't;he'd come up with something else if he had to. He was quite the evil mastermind, after all. "Very reassuring,"I commented acerbically, rolling my eyes at his characteristic lack of concern.

Almost as soon as the two of us fell silent, our car came to an abrupt halt and the compelled driver turned in his seat to face us. "This is your destination, Sirs,"he announced in an emotionless monotone, shutting off the car's engine as he spoke, prompting me to look out the window and get a glimpse of our current location.

The first thing I noticed was the mountain in the distance. It disappeared far into the clouds and, although it wasn't covered with snow like I had expected it to be, it still seemed rather sinister, curving at the peak so that it strongly resembled a crescent moon. It was steadily getting darker, so the mountain was becoming less and less visible as time passed.

"What's the name of this mountain again?"Damon inquired quietly, grabbing his duffel off of the floor and making to exit the car. Opening the door, I answered. "Mount Leruska. And, if I'm remembering correctly, the place we're looking for is going to be underneath it,"I pointed at the bottom of the mountain with my index finger, stepping out of the car and onto the vaguely frosted dirt.

I heard Damon shut the door behind me, but whatever he had been going to say next was cut off by Rebekah coming up beside me and putting her two cents in. "I don't like the looks of this. How are we supposed to get in there?"the female Original wondered warily, crossing her arms over her chest.

Unexpectedly, Damon was the one who responded. "I'm pretty sure the entrance is there somewhere;it's just hidden,"he paused, blinking bemusedly. "I do not know how I knew that," "Well, let's find out if you're right,"I suggested offhandedly, taking the lead and heading straight toward the jagged mountain without waiting for the others to follow me.

When we got close enough to the foot of the mountain, I realized that Damon, as a matter of fact, _was_ right;there was a door carved into the black rock. It was crude and barely visible, but it was there-and it had the same symbols as the ones on my arm etched into the frame.I cast a glance over my shoulder to see Damon was as expressionless as ever;except for his eyes. There was something in his crystal blue orbs-something that seemed oddly like recognition.

"Are we going in, or are we just going to stand here all night?"Rebekah questioned from behind me, causing me to roll my eyes. "I doubt it's really that simple,"I observed mildly, stepping closer to the craggy door and smoothing my hand over the rough stone. As if merely to prove me wrong, the second I touched it, the door swung inward though no one had visibly opened it.

"Well, what do you know?I guess it _is _that simple,"Kol commented, brushing past the rest of us and plunging into the unkown cavern. The rest of his siblings followed suit, but Damon and I hung back for a moment. "Did that seem a little strange to you?"I quipped out of the corner of my mouth, not really caring if the Originals heard me or not.

The corners of Damon's pale mouth twitched slightly. "Everything about this seems a little strange to me, Jer,"he admitted carelessly, moving to my side to take my hand. "Come on, we have a Book to find,"he added against my ear.

I allowed him to lead me inside, my vision instantly adjusting to the lack of light underneath the mountain. Around me, I saw stone and stalactites hanging from the ceiling of the low cave. But the most striking thing was the feeling I got from being there;it was almost like I had been there before, only I had forgotten up until now. From the expression on my boyfriend's face, I could tell he was feeling the same way-though I knew he wouldn't voice it out loud. What was more, I was pretty sure I knew exactly where we had to go next.

"The riddle on my arm said something about a tomb,"I declared to no one in particular, extricating my hand from Damon's and moving to the head of the queue. I squinted in the darkness, just barely able to make out the continuation of the rocky transit in the lack of light. Then, almost like something was compelling me to do so, I stepped deftly through the mouth of the passage and started walking deeper into the cavern without another word.

I distinctly heard Damon and the rest of my companions scrambling to follow me, but their presence barely registered. My mind was consumed with the location of this tomb-and it was incredibly close.

My head was so preoccupied that I didn't hear the haunting whispers that followed us through the dark passage.

"_At the end of this journey,, there lies only oblivion."_

* * *

_The fog was like a thick, smoky grey blanket encompassing everything, making it near impossible to see any further than right in front of his face. Amidst the blackened, dilapidated trees and indigo sky, hardly anything was visible, save for the metallic stars strewn overhead like silvery sprinkles. That particular image didn't last very long, however._

_Suddenly, an array of sinister-looking charcoal clouds began to roll into view, blocking the stars and bringing a crash of thunder with them. Rain began to fall like shattered pieces of glass through the sky, engorging the mist and causing it to seem a lot less insubstantial than it had before. When a bolt of lightning fractured the dense cloud cover, the stage was complete;the maelstrom had begun._

_Preceded by a second clap of thunder, the jagged Earth below began to split. Little spider-web like cracks ran along the damp ground and it opened up, like a gargantuan mouth, to reveal blackness. An empty, swirling abyss._

_There was a violent flash of pale, iridescent green light within the aperture. Then, from within, a figure began to materialize out of the previously impenetrable fog._

_At first glance, this figure didn't appear to be anyone out of the ordinary;he just seemed like any average guy. But then, there was the fact that he had just come out of a hole in the ground-and that the eyes beneath his mottled black hood were glowing like molten gold. _

_In the dark of the night, both men appeared to be woefully out of place._

"_So it's true then, what the spirits have been saying all year;the Cantagherri heir has returned,"the shorter male declared softly as the newcomer stepped onto the more level ground, apparently unconcerned by the thrashing rain. The latter's bloodless lips curved in a slow smirk._

"_It's been nine million years since the Book of Terrors was created to seal away my powers and my memories. But now its usefulness ends;in two days, I regain my full potential,"the blacknette intoned firmly, gold morphing into twin shards of glacial ice. He swiveled his head around to face his companion. "The Shiraq do not want me to rise;that is why they created the curse. Retrieving the Book also means awakening the guardians once again,"_

_The other inclined his head in understanding. "I've been in this since the beginning for a reason;to keep the Shriaq from preventing you from fulfilling your destiny,"the brunette stated matter-of-factly, "This world has been in desperate need of a change for the last twelve millenia. The guardians won't be able to put a stop to it;not this time,"_

_Water dripped off of the rim of the jet-black hood, refracting the almost unearthly glow from the taller's bright aquamarine orbs._

"_My father paid the ultimate price for my survival;my consort was reborn as a pitiful human and had to give up his first life in order to make it this far. The boy is the key now;if he doesn't embrace his true nature, this will all be over before it even begins." He locked eyes with the shorter male, boring holes into his hazel pools. "Do you think he has what it takes to make the correct choice?"_

"_Well, even if he doesn't, I'm sure you'll have no trouble convincing him to make it;after all, you are his boyfriend and the only one he has left,"said Alaric with a reassuring grin, grasping the vampire's arm briefly._

_A humourless laugh fell from the blacknette's pale mouth. "In that case, all that's left is the thing itself. At the end of this journey, I will be my true self once more-and the new Dark Age can finally begin,"the Cantagherri heir paused for dramatic effect, "Inside the tomb, all of the world's worst terrors will be reawakened."_

* * *

The tomb was unlike anything the vampires had ever seen before. Carved out of pure white marble, the same markings covering Jeremy's right arm were engraved in the lid and carved around the edges. What was more, the lid was spattered with a dark, vermillion substance that looked suspiciously like blood.

"Do you think the Book is in there?"The Shiraq quipped offhandedly, whispering because he felt a raised voice might trigger a trap or something. He scuffed the toe of his boot tensely on the gravel-covered ground, scanning the walls of the surrounding cavern with a sort of detached interest.

Beside him, Damon shrugged. "This is the only place that matches the description in that riddle on your arm. So if it isn't, something definitely isn't right,"he stated smoothly, hands retreating into the pockets of his leather jacket.

Jeremy made a low sound of agreement before throwing caution to the winds and pushing at the ivory lid. Unsurprisingly, though, it didn't budge;that was fine. He hadn't expected it to be that easy.

"Maybe the way to open it is written on the lid,"Rebekah suggested helpfully, leaning forward to try and get a better look at the tomb from behind her brothers and Jeremy and Damon. The black-haired vampire snorted, "Yeah, except no one can read those symbols. It's a dead language. We were only able to translate the Riddle thanks to Alaric,"

"Actually,"Jeremy cut in suddenly, kneeling next to the marble tomb and examining the archaic writings carefully, looking back and forth from them to his right arm, "I can read them."

Perfectly aware that when it fell silent that everyone was now staring at him, he swallowed and began to translate the words carved into the ivory stone. "_The curse of fear is also a gift. Within the blood of the guardian lies the key and the nightmare._``

After he finished reading aloud the second riddle, Jeremy stood, a frown marring his olive-skinned forehead. Why did it always come down to either a sacrifice or blood?

"The Shiraq were the guardians of the Book,"Elijah's cultured accent broke the silence in a factual tone. His cool gaze fell on the youngest member of their motley crew. "That must mean opening this requires _your_ blood, Jeremy Gilbert, as you are the only Shriaq left in existence as far as we know,"

The fledgling rolled his bronze eyes expressively. "Think you're supposed to put it there?"Damon jerked his chin at the already bloodstained surface of the white stone. Jeremy lifted his right shoulder in a non-committal gesture, "Worth a shot,"

Baring his fangs, he bit into his palm and placed it flat on top of the coffin, smearing his blood across the lid in all the same places that were already stained. As siib as Jeremy lifted his hand off of the coffin, the lid began to slide toward him, falling off of its perch atop the box.

A second later, it thudded to the ground at the vampires's feet, stirring up clouds of grit and dust that temporarily obscured their vision. When the dust cleared, they were looking at a vacant tomb;empty, that is, except for a winding staircase that disappeared down into the darkness.

"Guess we're going down there, then, huh?"Damon commented, casting a sideways glance over at the rest of his companions. "Scared, Salvatore?"Kol questioned mockingly, curling his upper lip in a sneer. "You wish, Mikaelson,"the blacknette retorted with a scoff, striding to the front of the group and stepping over the rim of the marble box before beginning the descent down the convoluted, precarious staircase.

Without waiting for any further comments, Jeremy copied his boyfriend and descended into the lightless passage, his vampire sight allowing him to see the path ahead with crystal clarity. Unlike the tomb, the walls encasing the stairs were an indented obsidian, blending in with the shadows and giving the accurate impression of being trapped inside a black hole.

The further down they went, the more strongly Jeremy began to feel as if this place was somewhere he had gone many times before. He had brief flashes of memory; not tangible scenes, but sensations, feelings and images. The mountain's peak covered in snow. A white circle surrounding the tomb, glowing like a strobe light. Stones of jet shattered, the shards lying on the ground like fragments of a broken mirror.

He bit the inside of his cheek as more and more of these flashes assaulted his mind, becoming more vivid each time. They were all disjointed like his mind wanted to remember, but something else was trying to prevent it. It was almost as if his brain was at war with itself-and it was confusing and frustrating the hell out of him.

The flashes got stronger the deeper into the catacombs they went, and they became darker and more twisted, like they were trying to warn him or something. He saw a procession of bloody corpses, splayed over an altar of fire. The glint of a serrated knife as it cleaved into a human girl's flesh. And then, there were the sounds;screams, groans, _howls_, all mingling into one unignorable cacophony of white noise. Yet, he didn't want to block it out;he wanted to know what it all meant.

Then, all of a sudden, a single voice that sounded strangely like his black-haired boyfriend cut through the meaningless murmurs, uttering a single sentence that chilled him to the bone.

"_You know what this is all going to come down to, Jeremy;the choice is going to come down to you._"

"Jeremy,"Damon piped up from beside him, startling him out of his reverie. The Shiraq looked up through his copper lashes, seeing the frown creasing his boyfriend's ivory forehead, "Are you all right? You look as if you've seen a ghost,"

Jeremy gave a rueful smile at the irony of that statement. He didn't know why or how, but somehow he knew he wasn't the only one having this unprecedented bout of deja vu. "You know exactly what I'm feeling right now." It wasn't a question and Damon didn't treat it like one, either.

The raven-haired vampire allowed the barest traces of a smile to curve the corners of his pale mouth. "I think we'll find out why soon enough,"he stated confidently, casting a furtive glance over his shoulder as their elder accompaniments. They were probably listening in on every word Damon and Jeremy were saying, but the fledgling found himself thinking that it mattered little. After all, the Originals didn't know what they were talking about;therefore, they couldn't do a thing about it.

_The heir has arrived._

They reached the bottom of the staircase a few moments later and Jeremy was struck by the sudden brightness. Torches flared to life around them, illuminating the alabaster walls and the familiar curving symbols painted on the sheer white ground. A slight breeze rippled through the cylindrical chamber-which was odd, considering they were supposedly underground.

And then there was the ice. It covered everything;the walls, the ground, the ceiling, even the torches. The flames lighting the room were even burning steel-blue, almost matching the precise shade of Damon's eyes;but for some reason, it wasn't cold. In fact, the temperature was fairly average for a regular, aboveground room. They couldn't even see their breath when they exhaled.

"So where is this Book of Terrors, then?"Kol broke the tense silence with his typical lack of tact, folding his lanky arms expectantly.

As if in response, the symbols beneath their feet suddenly lit up just as the torches flickered out. The sigils spun-and the ones covering Jeremy's arm mimicked them. Then, an unfamiliar gravelly voice issued out of the boy's mouth, prompting everyone to stare at him speechlessly; "_If you want the Book, you must first make it past the guardians,_"

From the shadows materialized twelve cloaked figures, each one with a familiar sigil etched into their hoods. And the figure at the head of the group was holding a tattered, heavily bound and obviously ancient book in her gloved hands;the Book of Terrors.

The same voice that had come out of Jeremy's mouth a moment ago spoke again, this time emitting from the figure holding the Book. "_I am Bonnie Bennett, the leader of the Shiraq,_"she pushed back her brown hood, revealing a dark-skinned face and chocolate brown eyes that were focused, rigid and unblinking, on Jeremy. "_You are one of us, Jeremy Gilbert-and if you want the book of Terrors, you will accept your true self and kill the last surviving vampire lord._"

Jeremy blinked rapidly, shaking his brown head as if coming out of a trance. A frown crinkled the corners of his eyes. "I don't know who the hell you're talking about,"he retorted coldly, clenching his jaw;it was the truth. He'd never even heard of a ''vampire lord'' before in his life.

The Shiraq leader gave him an indulgent smile, as if she were dealing with a very small child. "Of course, you wouldn't remember. We made sure of that by getting rid of the _Cantagherri _millenia ago-but we made the mistake of leaving their crowned prince alive. In his time, he was known as the Reaper, but you know him by another name,"she pointed her chin at the black-haired vampire standing directly behind Jeremy, "Damon Salvatore,"

_The heir...must be killed-or the human race is doomed._

* * *

_Vampires had always been one of the most terrifying creatures to walk the Earth. From their first appearance literally millions of years ago, they struck fear into the hearts of all humans and formed legends and myths abound._

_Though they were mostly a feral race, they, like any other competent species, had rulers who governed them and kept them alive-figuratively speaking, of course-in times of crisis._

_These were the legendary vampire lords;the Cantagherri._

_The first four vampires were the most powerful, the strongest and the oldest. And they were lead by the deadliest vampire of them all._

_The __**mietitore.**_

_A ruthless, but fair leader, he was the last surviving member of the Cantagherri royal family and their crown prince. He was called the Reaper because he not only drained his victims of their blood, he also tore them apart to the point where they were no longer recognizable._

_To this day, he still possesses the same _modus operandi_. But now in the year 2012, he goes by another name._

_Damon Salvatore._

* * *

The end of another chapter. Things are getting dramatic now. Hope you enjoyed.


	6. Chapter 6

Title:The Book of Terrors

Authoress:superhackaninja5

Rating:M

Summary:see chapter one

Warnings:see chapter one

Disclaimer:You know what it is. I don't own anything. :P Unfortunately.

Note: Vampire Diaries season 4 is over. I can't wait until season 5 because some spoilers I read totally make me think that Daremy is going to become a reality in that season. Won't say anything more about them, but if mermaids make an appearance, I will sue. I mean, seriously, mermaids? The fuck?

* * *

My mind just could not contemplate properly what was happening here. This couldn't be real, could it? Was this woman smoking crack or something? Obviously, she had no idea who I was-and what had happened to me. I had given up everything to be with Damon and now she was asking me to give _him_ up?

A mirthless smile curled my upper lip as I stared down the brown-haired woman.

I looked over at my lover, who, even surrounded by Shiraq soldiers, still managed to look completely relaxed and nonchalant. He was actually lounging in the center of his ''guards'', hands in the pockets of his leather jacket and the barest trace of a smile on his pale lips. Oddly, this sentence popped into my head:_never let your enemies see you sweat._

"You must be out of your little witchy mind,"I told her coolly, crossing my arms over my chest. I cast another glance at Damon and he gave me a wink, making me grin. "You can't seriously think I would kill the one person who still means something to me just because some woman I've never met before says so. If you think that, then you're even more delusional than I first thought."

The woman stared at me impassively, as if trying to gauge whether or not I was being serious. Apparently, it took her about five minutes to realize that I was dead serious;I wasn't going to budge. There was no way in Hell that I was going to kill Damon just because this woman told me to. "Then I'm afraid you leave me no choice. The Book of Terrors will never be yours,"Bonnie replied with an awful sort of finality.

"I think you're forgetting one very important thing, _Bonnie_. You see, I also happen to be a vampire as well as one of you,"I cut her off cockily, crossing my arms over my chest. "And I didn't come alone."

There was the sound of air rushing and when the Shiraq leader turned around, Elijah and Klaus had materialized behind me, the elder holding one of her fellow soldiers captive in front of him. The others moved to seize Damon, but he was no longer in their center, and he was now joined by two of the Originals, Kol and Rebekah. "Give me the Book, Bonnie Bennett, or your second-in-command dies,"Elijah demanded smoothly, holding the male Shiraq by the scruff of his neck.

Bonnie hugged the Book closer to her chest. "You wouldn't,"she whispered with badly concealed terror, voice trembling slightly. "I would,"the eldest Original said calmly. "You have until the count of three. One,"

I watched as the female Shiraq's eyes flickered back and forth from the Book in her hands to the copper-haired male whose life was at stake, clearly torn. Crippling indecision;I knew the feeling.

"How do I know that you won't kill him the second I hand it over?"she challenged skeptically, showing no sign of relenting.

"You don't,"I answered flatly for my companion, "But you can be sure that Elijah _will_ kill him if you don't," Elijah inclined his head in agreement, wrapping his hand around his hostage's throat to show that he wasn't playing around. "Two,"

"_Incendia!"_Bonnie interjected loudly, interrupting before he could say ''three'', conjuring a ring of fire. "As much as it pains me, protecting the contents of this Book is much more important than a single life,"She held the ancient relic above her head. "Wrong choice, love,"Klaus gestured to his brother, launching himself at the witch.

The Book fell to the ground at her feet as she was knocked down by the hybrid. Elijah snapped his hostage's neck and went to help, tearing into the nearest soldie, sinking his fangs into their throats. Damon came up behind Klaus and Bonnie fighting, snatching the Book while the witch suddenly let out a bloodcurdling scream that reverberated throughout the cavern.

All eyes turned to her, lying on top of the orange flames, flesh blackening as she burned. That didn't last long, though, because the second she hit the fire, the others disappeared and so did she;the vampires could only stare as their enemies vanished into the night.

When the fire and smoke dissipated, all of the Shiraq were gone, and I stood where they had, licking blood off of his lips while throwing aside his last victim. Most of the Shiraq had taken off, but I still managed to decimate quite a few;dead bodies littered the ground, every one of them with their throats nearly ripped out.

"So did we get it, then?"I questioned mildly as the dark veins surrounding my eyes slowly receded and my eyes returned to their normal shade of brown. Damon held the Book up to him by way of a response as he kicked one of the Shiraq's corpses out of his path and closed the distance between us so he could hand it to me.

I took it from him when he reached me, examining it and turning it over carefully in my hands. "Doesn't really seem all that special to me,"I observed with a sense of anticlimax, blowing a sheet of dust off of the battered front cover. Damon shrugged offhandedly."Neither do you, but I saw past that a long time ago,"he commented with a slight smirk, wrapping an arm around my shoulders.

I snorted. "Thanks, Damon. That does wonders for my ego, that does,"I said sardonically, rolling my eyes.

He chuckled before switching topics. "Well, whether it's really special or not, we're the ones who have it now,"he locked eyes with the eldest of the Originals standing across from him, "Which means whatever happens now, we're doing it our way," He folded his arms across his chest as if daring them to contradict him.

Klaus held up his hands in a gesture of mock surrender.

"As long as ''your way'' includes breaking my curse, I don't really care,"he said indifferently, lifting his shoulder, "So what's next on your agenda, then?" Damon and I shared a brief look. I knew what _he_ probably wanted to do next-and I had to admit, I agreed. Not being pushed around by the Originals anymore was a very attractive option. But, then again...

"I guess we'll be breaking your curse first, then,"I decided, glancing at Damon to see what he thought. He gave me a blank look, but I saw in his eyes that he wanted to speak. I looked at him for a minute, so eventually he gave me another shrug. I guessed that meant he didn't really care. "Breaking Klaus' curse it is,"he conceded in an undertone.

* * *

(Damon's POV)

After we had set up camp near the mountains and everyone else had fallen asleep, I was still awake. I was sitting next to Jeremy, who was asleep on the ground in a sleeping bag. I was thinking about what the Shiraq leader had said, about me being the last surviving ''vampire lord'', or whatever it was.

I had always _wanted_ to be a more powerful vampire, but I had never imagined in all my years that I would turn out to be one. Come to think of it I didn't really believe that I was;I mean, what did that woman really know about me? I had never met her before in my life, so what authority did I have that she was telling the truth and not just screwing around with us?

I sighed. Well, there was one way to find out.

Inhaling deeply, I got to my feet and picked up the Book of Terrors from where it was resting on the ground near Jeremy's head. I had a moment of indecision, though;should I wake Jeremy? After all, he was the only one who could read the Book and I didn't think Alaric could translate it all via cellphone images at this time of night.

I knelt next to my boyfriend and nudged his shoulder. "Jer,"I said softly. His eyes opened and he raised an eyebrow at me. "Really, Damon? At this time of night with _them_ right over there?"he asked dryly, hoisting himself up on his elbows after carding a hand through his mussed-up brown hair.

I snorted at his sarcasm;he was even worse than me sometimes.

"My plan, remember?We're doing this now,"I told Jeremy quietly, standing up and holding out a hand to him. He shook his head and took my hand, letting me help him to his feet. "You don't think they're going to notice that we're gone?Or that the Book is?"the younger questioned, jerking his head toward the Originals warily.

I slid my free hand into the pocket of my leather jacket as I lead him away from our companions. "Well, even if they do, they can't stop us. If what that woman said about me is true, they can't do shit,"I quipped, trying to be flippant about it. Jeremy shot me a withering look, "Damon-" "No, Jeremy, "I interrupted before he could say anything else, stopping in my tracks and releasing his hand so he stopped, too.

He slipped his hands into the pockets of his jeans patiently, waiting for me to elaborate.

"I want to do this,"I stated bluntly, meeting his eyes so he could see that I was serious. "Not just because of them, but because I have to know, if what that woman said was true, I mean."

Jeremy bit his bottom lip, as if considering my words. "And if it is?"he asked after a moment's silence, stepping closer so that we were practically nose-to-nose.

I didn't know what to say after that;to be completely honest, I hadn't really thought about what I would do if it turned out that I was really one of these ''vampire lords''. And I couldn't really think about it clearly with Jeremy so close, his guileless brown eyes staring at me without blinking.

"I don't know,"I responded finally, cupping the back of his head affectionately. "I guess we'll just have to make it up as we go along, like we always do. Right?" Jeremy smiled ruefully, letting me brush my lips over his lightly."All right,"he whispered with mock resignation, pulling away but leaving an arm around my back, "Let's go,"

I grinned at him and continued to lead him away from the Originals' and our campsite. "Anyway, I need you to read this,"I gave him the Book as we got further away from our companions. "You're the only one who can, after all,"

Jeremy scoffed as he opened the Book and started flipping through the pages. "So what are we looking for again?"he queried curiously, scratching his chin in contemplation.

"Anything referencing making an ordinary vampire more powerful than an Original or something relating to that,"I suggested offhandedly, not really knowing what we were supposed to be looking for. "O-kay,"Jeremy nodded, turning another page over after scrutinizing the previous one carefully.

We walked in silence for a few minutes, punctuated only by the sound of Jeremy turning pages in the Book of Terrors and the faint crunching of leaves beneath our boots.

When I deemed we were far enough from the others, I stopped. "Here's something,"Jeremy piped up, turning the Book around so I could see. "You do realize I can't read that, right?"I pointed out.

He smiled, "Yeah, sorry. Habit. Anyway,"he turned the Book back around so it was facing him again, "It says the spell. It's pretty simple, actually;no sacrifices, no bloody rituals. Just a few archaic words and well, me to read them,"

I chuckled lightly. "Let's do this, then,"I said with conviction.

"Right,"Jeremy consented slowly, taking a few steps backward so there was space between us, "Ready, then?" I nodded an affirmative. "Okay,"the younger vampire inhaled deeply before starting to read the words written in the Book-or, at least, what I hoped were the words in the Book.

But I didn't hear that, because once he opened his mouth, my vision turned black and I was instantly assaulted with images that definitely weren't from the present-but they weren't of the future, either.

* * *

_**Shadows dancing nightmares closing in terror horrors fear flee or die**_

_Beneath the hallowed halls of the church in Moscow, Russia, the underground catacombs stirred. Candles blazed to life and figures peeled themselves out of the darkness to form a circle. Every one of them had blood-red eyes, pale white skin and slick, razor-sharp fangs._

_Vampires._

_They materialized with all the speed of phantoms, retracting their fangs to appear in their close-to-human forms-but there was no denying the almost aristocratic nature of the ivory features, highlighted by the flickering orange flames. These were no ordinary vampires, though;these were the legendary vampire lords._

_**Destruction impending a curse no man can staunch disaster deathe encroaching**_

"_Our rule is coming to an end."_

_The tallest of the four was the first one to break the ominous silence, speaking in a solemn, but frank tone. He gave his words a moment to sink in before continuing. "The Shiraq have made it clear that they don't approve of our dominion over the humans and they have the means to overthrow us," "Let me guess,"one of the others cut in disparagingly, "Their Book of Terrors,"_

"_Exactly,"the previous speaker inclined his head in rueful confirmation. The latter frowned back at him. "And what? We're just not going to do anything to stop them?" "We don't really have much of a choice, Trefor. The magic in the Book is what created us-therefore, it also has the power to undo us. Nature always demands balance, after all."_

_Trefor inhaled deeply. "That can't be all there is to it, though. There has to be a way we can fight back,"he declared stubbornly, refusing to believe that unconditional surrender was the only option. There was a pregnant, anticlimactic pause before the latter responded. "There is one way, but it is an extremely drastic step."_

_All eyes fell on the black-haired Cantagherri, who nodded slightly, "Explain, Will," Will's bottom lip caught between his teeth. "They're going to leave you alive, **mietitore**,"he said finally, hazel locking with ice, "They're going to take away your memories amd your powers and curse you into the body of a human just over eight million years from now,"_

"_And why would they do that?"the Reaper interrupted with evident scepticism, arching a thin midnight eyebrow, "Why not just destroy me like they no doubt plant to do with the rest of our race?" "Because apparently, they can't,"Will replied ebfore any of the others could broach their theories. _

_When the Reaper's other eyebrow rose to join the first, he elaborated in a matter-of-fact tone, "They tried once before when you were born, because they knew that you were going to be the harbinger of a new Dark Age, but their spell was nullified. It couldn't even touch you-or so your father tells us,"_

_A crease appeared in the blacknette's pale forehead;that was a story he had never heard before. His father had never told him about that._

_**Secrets abound the world is shattering darkness fall when the fire melts away what will remain?**_

"_Obviously, you're a lot more powerful than any of us could ever have imagined,"the auburn-haired Cantagherri finished almost reverently, tilting his head forward, "Which brings me to my plan,"He paused, then began to explain. "There's a spell in their Book of Terrors that will be able to give you back your memories and your powers. I've seen the future;I know you'll be able to find it and use it with the help of your consort, Jeremiah. Nine million years from now, the Shiraq will return and you will be the one to destroy them. So we are all going to do everything we can to make damn sure that that happens,"_

_The Reaper's rocket-blue slivers bored holes in his hazel orbs, invading his mind to try and gauge if he was telling the truth. There, he was able to see the vision for himself;it filled his head instantly with the prophetic scenarios._

_**Darkness follows in his wake slither devour engulf whole desolation is the name of the game**_

_Him as a minor vampire. Turned by a woman who then abandoned him._

_Jeremiah in human form, the younger brother of that woman's identical ancestor._

_The Book of Terrors in his enemies's hands._

_And then, finally, the genocide of an entire race:the Shiraq._

_Slowly, he opened his eyes to find the other two vampire lords staring at him and Will curiously. Clearing his throat, he was the one to break the silence this time. "I do not condone the loss of my family, but it seems a necessary sacrifice for the bigger picture. Brian,"he addressed the brunette standing on his right, "We stand down for this fight;it won't be the last,"_

_Brian nodded his understanding, mouth set in a grim line. "So when exactly can we expect this slaughter to begin?"he questioned offhandedly as if it were a throwaway matter of no real importance. _

_Will gave a hushed, dejected sigh, "It's already begun,"_

_**Inside this wasteland blistering burning ice fires of white licking flesh lust peel away the masks black porcelain in a million pieces breaking stars shatter chandeliers constellations of terrors unfolding**_

* * *

I didn't understand what was happening. I recognized myself in these images, but I didn't look the same as I did now. It was like looking at myself-but not.

I could hear Jeremy calling my name as well as the cold, hard Earth underneath my back, but I was powerless to respond. I was trapped in the visions, unable to break free. They were trying to tell me something, I knew that much. The question was, what?

* * *

_Darkness covered the obsidian fortress' Grand Chamber, where the two ancient vampires were currently situated. There were no candles, no lamps, no windows, not even a fireplace;not a single ray of light was permitted to penetrate this Hall of Terrors._

_At the very center, in front of the marble dais, stood the two immortal beings. The taller of the two was swathed from head to toe in black;he was truly a sight to behold. A kaleidescope of colours raced through his swirling eyes;they morphed from jet black to violet to ice blue and acid green before settling on a violent, molten gold that swallowed his pupils and gave him the appearance of some sort of..God._

_Next to him was his consort, dark brown hair partially hidden beneath an emerald green hood. Brown gloves covered his hands, one of which was entrwined with his companion's. His eyes glowed bronze, the symbols of another ancient race crawling up his throat and neck like living tattooes._

_**This is where it all starts**_

_Together, they stood while the sun faded from the sky above and the moon rose in its place. A thousand neon lights began to rain down;stars falling to the ground, hitting it with a reverberating crash that shook the whole planet. The heir and his consort were the catalyst for all of the apocalyptic events that were about to transpire._

_Then, a strangely magnified voice superimposed itself over the scene, ringing out through the night. In its daunting words was only the most subtle hints of black sorcery._

"_**When the Cantagherri prince and his consort finally join, they will form the most unholy union this Earth has ever seen**,"the disembodied voice announced malignantly and with a complete and utter lack of anything even remotely resembling human emotion. "**Together, they will have the power to bring the human race to its knees;together, they will have the power to swallow the sun-and the moon. In their wake, the legion of true shadows will rise again.**"_

_A wave of pure blackness swept across the fortress and soon, their luminescent eyes were the only source of light for miles around. The world was going to be ripped apart by the darkness. And they would be the ones to open the floodgates and smile._

_The voice had one more thing to say._

"_**This was always going to be your true purpose, Damon Salvatore:to usher in the new Dark Age and take revenge for the extermination of the Cantagherri line;to ensure that the sacrifices your father and your fellow vampire lords made were not in vain**,"it intoned with an awful sort of finality, "**Make the human world pay for its mistakes**,"_

_**Blood bone broken fractures fallen angel feathers this was no happy ending not this time not this fight plunge the world back into its cage don't ever try to scream again**_

_Claim the Cantagherri throne and open the Gates to the Netherworld._

_Let it all fall to pieces._

* * *

"Damon!"Jeremy shouted for what seemed like the millionth time, shaking his comatose boyfriend frantically. He had no idea what had happened;he had just been reading the spell from the Book and then, all of a sudden, Damon had just keeled over, collapsing onto the ground without a single sound of warning. This was definitely _not _what Jeremy had been expecting to happen when they attempted to make Damon a more powerful vampire than the Originals.

The male Shiraq huffed loudly in abject frustration, sitting back on his heels while he debated briefly about whether or not he should go and wake their companions. He didn't really relish explaining to them how this had happened, but since Damon wasn't waking up, that was looking more and more like his only option.

As if sensing his distress, the black-haired vampire chose that precise moment to regain consciousness, jerking up as suddenly as if he had been electrocuted. "Shit,"he swore under his breath, pinching the bridge of his nose and closing his eyes while Jeremy breathed a sigh of relief.

"Fucking hell, Damon, don't you dare ever scare me like that again,"he admonished his boyfriend reprovingly, smacking the elder in the chest with the back of his hand while attempting not to seem like he had been too worried.

Damon didn't even seem to notice this, though. When he opened his eyes again, they weren't their usual shade of azure;instead, they were a swirling, molten gold that Jeremy had never seen before.

"What that woman said, about me being the last surviving vampire lrd was the truth, Jer,"he told the fledgling softly with what sounded uncharacteristically like awe in his low baritone. "I remember _everything_. Every memory that the Shiraq have taken away from me has returned. I finally know everything about my past,"He turned his flashing gaze on his speechless boyfriend before adding, "_Our _past."

_The heir...has been awakened._

I didn't know what to say to that. What _do_ you say when you find out that your boyfriend is one of the last of the most powerful race of vampires in the world?

It didn't help that those blazing aurelian eyes were still focused on me and they weren't blinking.

More to break the tense silence than anything else, I spoke, attempting a casual tone. "Can you do anything about those new eyes of yours? They're really starting to unnerve me,"I asked lackadaisically, feeling the corners of my mouth twitch slightly at the absurdity of that comment, given the circumstances.

It seemed Damon felt the same way because he arched an eyebrow at me before his eyes slowly slid back into their previous icy blue. "Better?"he quipped airily, getting to his feet with all the standard supernatural grace he generally possessed.

I shot him a withering look before following suit, watching him out of the corner of my eye to see if I could spot any other differences in his appearance. But other than the eyes, he looked pretty much like the same Damon I had always known.

"Okay,"I broke the awkward silence again as I stood up as well and came to stand next to the elder vampire. "So we've established that we're both part of some ancient race. The question is, now that we know that for a fact, what do we do about it?"

Damon took a deep, calming breath, leaning his head back so he was facing the dark, starless sky. "We're both part of two _different_ ancient races, races that are supposed to be enemies,"he corrected musingly, sliding his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket before turning his gaze back onto me. I jerked my shoulders in a questioning gesture, "The point being?"

"There's got to be some sort of significance in that, Jeremy. The memories I got back, in one of them there was a prophecy about me-and you,"he told me, seeming to be weighing each one of his words before saying them. He paused, taking another deep breath before just laying it all out; "It called us the ''most unholy union the Earth has ever seen'' and that together, we would have the power to crush the human race and usher in a new Dark Age."

I swallowed thickly, looking into Damon's glinting eyes;there was a look there that I had only ever seen once before in the two years we'd been together. It was the same one he'd had when I told him I loved him.

It was excitement.

"_You could rip them all to shreds, love,_"a voice sounding uncannily like Damon's came unbidden into my mind, "_Make the world pay for all that it has taken from you._"

That sounded like a very attractive option. After all, I was a vampire now-and a Shiraq. I had powers the likes of which normal people could only dream of;I was in the perfect position to redefine the words ''vengeful rampage''.

The Shiraq had made the mistake of thinking they could control me just because I was one of them-just like destiny had wanted to control me by making it so that I had to choose between Damon and my family. But I wasn't just some pawn of fate;I wasn't going to do what anyone expected me to do.

I stared back into Damon's shocking blue eyes, which now carried a trace of gold around the edges;past the excitement, I could see reflected in them the visions, the memories that had been returned to him. Instantly, I was no longer in that deserted field with Damon watching me for a reaction;now I was in his mind and in his memories of his past. _Our _past.

Although, for being the past, it sure looked a hell of a lot like the future.

_**Bleeding waking horrors the sun falling to the Earth begging to be broken human bones the flesh reflects the madness within**_

_The acrid smell of burning flesh permeated the air around us. I could see every human in that cursed town, Mystic Falls, kneeling, scraping on the ground, begging for their lives. But the fires were unlike any other;they were a pale, iridescent white._

_Broken glass fragments cut into their knees, blowing through with the wind and littering the cobbled streets. This had been a long time coming;this was what it had all been leading up to. All of it had been for this_

_Shadows swirled all around, blocking out the moonlight, blocking out the stars. Blood ran red like a river, streaming down the bricks, forming puddles on the ground;the results of what had obviously been a merciless slaughter._

_In the center of the carnage, we stood, bound together, the darkness surrounding us like a protective barrier. The Shiraq were hanging from the street lamps and their leader, the dark-skinned witch was prostrated at our feet, Damon's boot pressed against her and cuts were all over her body and she was pale and drawn, like she had been through some terrible ordeal._

"_P-please,"she pleaded hoarsely, tears tracking through the dried blood on her dark cheeks, shaking under her duress. "You have no idea what you are unleashing by doing this."_

_I grinned from Damon's side. "No, actually, I really think we do,"I whispered smoothly, "With your death, we give this fucked-up planet exactly what it deserves;we do what should have been done nine million years ago,"I snapped my fingers._

_Screams pierced the night as the witch died, choking on her own blood. She was the key;now that her life had been snuffed out, the true shadows could rise again._

_**In all our darkest dreams we light the pyres for their sacrifices**_

_**Burn it all to the ground-break the world and be it done.**_

I came out of the vision, gasping and clutching blindly at Damon's jacket to try and ground myself, force myself back into reality. "Jeremy,"Damon's lips against my ear were what finally cleared my eyes, made me return to that marshy meadow;I focused on the feel of his arms around me and his breath on my skin and after a few tense minutes, I was able to see again.

"Jesus,"I breathed heavily as I gradually came back down to Earth, gripping Damon's shoulders and using him to straighten myself out. "What the hell was that?" "What did you see?"my boyfriend queried curiously, keeping his arms coiled around my waist as if trying to keep me steady.

I gave a quiet sigh, shaking my head to try and clear the remainder of the blurriness from my crowded mind. I was still seeing that vision;little flashes of it were still lurking at the edges of my eyes and making it difficult for me to concentrate on anything besides those images. Inhaling deeply, I tried to focus again, closing my eyes and clenching my hands over Damon's shoulders tightly,

"I think I saw what you saw of your memories, but it didn't seem like the past,"I stated tentatively, opening my eyes so I could look my boyfriend in the eyes again. I tensed when I felt his fingers digging into the small of my back, but I continued anyways, "I saw you and me. We were back in Mystic Falls, and everyone-well, almost everyone was dead. The Shiraq were dead, the rest of the citizens were bowing to us and there were these..shadows rising out of the ground, coming to finish what we started,"

Damon curled his hand into my shirt, moving the other to cup the side of my face. "I don't think that was a memory, Jeremy,"he stated honestly, rocking back on his heels so that he could see me clearly. "I think that was another premonition;another vision of the future, just like the one you had before we came here about this quest costing you me."

I frowned. "But that one was wrong;I didn't lose you-" "That isn't, strictly speaking, true,"Damon cut me off candidly, "In a manner of speaking, you did lose me;you lost the me I was when we met and got the one who existed nine million years ago. The thing about the future, Jeremy, is that it isn't always specific. Your vision didn't say that I was going to die, after all, now did it?"

I had to admit that that was the truth;the vision I'd had hadn't explicitly said that Damon was going to die at the end of this journey. All it had said was that I was going to lose him-and I had lost the Damon I had always known to the vampire he was in the past;the one who had absolute power strong enough to overwhelm even an Original.

"Are you all right?"Damon asked after a moment of silence, pressing his lips to mine and kissing me lightly. I smiled as we broke apart, still with my hands on his shoulders. "I am now,"I assured him confidently sliding my hands down so I could keep his on me. He chuckled affectionately at my response, pecking me on the lips once more before gently removing his hands, but leaving his arm draped over my waist.

"Come on,"he whispered, "We have some other business to take care of."

* * *

They returned to the campsite to find Klaus and his siblings all awake and waiting for them expectantly. "Well, what do we have here? Forget to tell us that you were going to take a midnight stroll?"Kol called out when Damon and Jeremy came within shouting distance, crossing his arms over his chest. He scoffed when he saw that the Shiraq male had the Book in his hands, "And with the Book of Terrors, no less. So let's have it, then;what did you do?"

The shorter brunette dropped the ancient volume on the ground and held up his hands in a gesture of surrender. "You can have it back. We're done with it, after all,"he said carelessly, eyes performing the merest of flickers toward his boyfriend.

Klaus noticed this and his blue eyes narrowed. "What did you do?"the Hybrid growled, repeating his brother's question with barely concealed impatience and uncharacteristic fear.

"_We_ uncovered the truth, Klaus,"Damon replied for both of them, taking a confident step forward so that he and the blonde Original were standing practically nose-to-nose. He met those furious aquamarine orbs with an indulgent smirk curving his pale lips. "You don't have the juice to back up your threats anymore, hybrid. As of tonight, _I_ am the strongest vampire here and I'm the one calling the shots. So, if you want to break your curse, I suggest you don't piss me off and maybe Jeremy here will consent to translate the spell you need."

The Hybrid blinked several times, as if he couldn't believe his ears because, well, he couldn't. He had heard of the _Cantagherri_ before, but he'd thought it was just a myth. Which was probably why he was still a little skeptical.

"If you are really one of these ''vampire lords'',"he sneered incredulously, "Then let's see some proof-"

No sooner were the words out of his mouth that he found himself flat on his back with the blacknette's hand pressing down on his throat, gripping it like a vise. The astounding thing was that it actually hurt, the pressure Damon was putting on his airway;he was actually having trouble breathing.

"You don't get to question me anymore, _Nik,_"the other vampire hissed in a low, dangerous tone, getting right up in his face so that Klaus couldn't see anything but him. His grip tightened marginally and Klaus coughed, struggling to get air back in his lungs. "I told you, if you want to make it out of this _alive_, never mind with your curse broken, you definitely don't want to push me. Not this time. So you can either _back down_ or I kill you and your siblings right now. Make. Your. Choice." He uttered the last three words as if they were each a complete sentence.

Klaus looked up into those merciless ice-blue eyes and he found himself experiencing something he never thought he would and never had before in his life:terror. He couldn't read the _Cantagherri_'s thoughts the way Damon probably could his;but he did know that this wasn't a bluff. Damon really was going to kill him if he didn't make the right choice here. Which made it not all that much of a choice, really.

"You win,"he surrendered hoarsely, hand closing around Damon's wrist so he could attempt to pry the vampire lord's hand from his throat. It galled him to be giving in like this, but the way he saw it, he didn't have another choice. "I'll do whatever it is you want me to. Just leave me-and them-alone."

Damon released him with a vicious grin and he took in a huge, rattling gasp, clutching at his throat as he slowly regained his breath. "Well,"Damon said, pale mouth curving in a satisfied smile, "That takes care of that, then," He lifted his gaze to address the remaining three Originals. "What about the rest of you? Will you work with me-or do I have to strangle and threaten you as well?"

Elijah held his palms up in a gesture of capitulation, taking a step back. "That won't be necessary,"he placated calmly, moving to stand between his siblings in a protective stance, "We're not going to fight you. What is you want from us?"

Damon's smile gradually evolved into a fully-fledged sneer as he observed the Originals, for the first time ever, kowtowing to him. If that wasn't a sight that just warmed his heart...

"I want you to do whatever I tell you to from this point on,"he stated in a voice that made it sound like he was addressing a very small child, "Do that and you'll get what you want," Kol blinked, bemused;this was a situation none of them could have ever foreseen. "Fine,"they all accepted the terms of the deal, knowing it was the only way the curse was going to get broken.

It was settled then;it was time to break the curse that kept Klaus' werewolf side dormant.

* * *

Jesus, that chapter took forever. Bane of my existence, thy name is Writer's Block. I think some of the line breaks got really fucked-up. Well, hopefully thanks to this little inspiration spike, I can update some of my other stories like Castle of Nightmares and TWASFU. So expect updates on those soon. Until next time :)


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